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I  SAMUEL    AGNEW, 

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HISTORY 


CONGREGATIONALISM 


FROM  ABOUT  A.  D.  250  TO  1616. 


BY  GEORGE  PUNCHARD, 

AUTHOR  OF  "  A  VIEW   OF   CONGREGATIONALISM. 


SALEM: 
PUBLISHED  BY  JOHN  P.  JEWETT. 

BOSTON  :    TAPPAN  &  DENNETT,    CPtOCKER  &  BREWSTER. 
NEW  YORK  :    DAYTON  &  SAXTON. 

1841. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1841,  by 

JOHN  P.  JEWETT, 
in  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  Massachusetts. 


Allen  &  Morrill  J  Printers,  Andover. 


1^ 


PREFACE. 


This  volume  contains  the  history  of  Congregationalism 
from  about  A.  D.  250  to  1616,  Much  of  it,  consequently, 
is  occupied  with  the  history  of  {he  principles  and  doctrines 
now  embraced  by  the  denomination,  rather  than  by  the  his- 
tory of  Congregationalists  themselves.  Though  as  a  de- 
nomination, we  had  no  distinctive,  organized  existence  un- 
til near  the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century  ;  yet,  inasmuch 
as  some  of  our  denominational  peculiarities  have  always 
found  advocates  and  friends,  since  the  days  of  the  apostles, 
— a  very  imperfect  notion  could  be  formed  of  our  history, 
if  these  fticts  were  entirely  overlooked.  But,  in  order  to 
bring  them  out,  it  has  been  necessary  to  travel  over  a  very 
extensive  field  of  observation,  and  to  introduce  more  of  gen- 
eral history  than,  at  first  thought,  may  seem  strictly  proper 
in  a  denominational  work. 

The  sources  whence  this  history  has  been  drawn,  will 
sufficiently  appear  by  reference  to  the  margin.  Original 
authorities  have  been  appealed  to  whenever  they  have 
been  within  my  reach  ;  and  when  they  have  not,  the  defect 
has  been,  in  part  at  least,  supplied,  by  comparing  several 
second-hand  authorities,  and  when  it  was  possible,  men  of 
different  views  and  habits  of  thought. 

I  have  not  been  anxious  to  avoid  the  charge  of  making 
my  pages  "  bristle  with  notes  and  references."  It  would 
have  saved  a  great  deal  of  labor  to  have  omitted  them  alto- 
gether;  but  I  could  not  persuade  myself  that  an  historical 
work  would  be  of  any  value  which  did  not  furnish  vouch- 
ers for  its  statements.  The  pretty  copious  extracts  from 
the  early  Congregational  writers,  will,  1  am  confident,  be 
regarded  as  among  the  most  valuable  portions  of  this  vol- 
ume. To  the  community  generally,  these  writings  are  un- 
known, and  utterly  inaccessible  ;  and  yet,  they  are  among 
the  richest  and  most  important  materials  of  our  history  : 


IV  PREFACE. 

and  I  flatter  myself  that  T  have  performed  an  acceptable 
service  to  the  denomination  by  bringing  to  light  the  sen- 
timents of  our  ancestors  in  their  own  quaint  but  vigorous 
style. 

So  far  as  I  know,  this  is  the  first  attempt  ever  made  to 
write  a  history  of  Congregationalism.  It  may  seem  a 
strange  and  unaccountable  fact,  that  so  large,  and  impor- 
tant, and  learned  a  denomination  has  never  before  found  a 
historiographer.  And  some  may  think  that  the  present  un- 
dertaking requires  explanation  and  apology.  I  have  thought 
so  myself;  and  designed  to  say  a  few  words  to  palliate,  if 
not  to  excuse  my  boldness.  But,  on  reflection,  it  has  oc- 
curred, that,  if  the  undertaking  should  prove  measurably 
successful,  no  apology  will  be  necessary  ;  and  if  a  failure, 
none  will  avail  if  offered.  Conscious  of  having  done  what 
I  could  to  render  the  work  acceptable  and  valuable  to  the 
intelligent  part  of  the  denomination,  I  shall  cheerfully  sub- 
mit to  their  judgment,  be  it  what  it  may.  And  if,  in  travel- 
ing so  long,  and  difficult  a  path,  and  one  hitherto  untrodden, 
I  have  sometimes  stumbled  by  the  way,  it  will  not  be  a 
matter  of  much  surprise  ;  and  I  shall  feel  that  they  deserve 
my  thanks,  rather  than  my  complaints,  who  shall  discover 
and  point  out  my  mistakes  ;  remembering  that  a  wise  man 
has  said,  "  He  that  commits  anything  to  writing,  gives  men 
a  bill  of  his  manners  ;  which  every  one  that  reads  may  put 
in  suit  against  him,  if  there  be  cause." 

Should  the  success  of  this  volume  warrant  it,  another 
— which  is  already  in  a  state  of  forwardness — will  be  pub- 
lished, containing  the  history  of  the  denomination  at  home 
and  abroad  from  about  1616,  to  the  present  time. 

GEORGE  PUNCHARD. 
Plymouth,  JY.  H.  June,  1841. 


CONTENTS. 


INTRODUCTION. 

Principles  and  Doctrines  of  Congregationalism,  page  13.  This, 
for  substance,  the  Polity  of  the  Apostolic  Churches,  14.  How 
this  System  was  gradually  undermined,  and  finally  destroyed — 
the  process  commenced  at  a  very  early  period,  16.  Deviations 
from  apostolic  church  order,  before  the  close  of  the  2d  century,  17. 
The  process  of  deterioration  noticed — Extra-scriptural  authority 
given  to  the  pastors,  18.  Influence  of  city  churches,  20.  Of  law- 
making synods  and  councils,  21.  The  admission  that  Christian 
ministers  were  successors  to  the  Jewish  priesthood,  22.  Careless- 
ness in  the  admission  of  members  to  the  churches,  24.  Wealth  and 
temporal  honors  conferred   upon  the  clergy,  29.     Ornaments,  ele- 

fancies,  and  luxuries,  indulged  in  by  the  churches — Influence  of 
aganism,  33.  The  establishment  of  the  temporal  power  of  the 
Roman  Pontiff,  36.  The  Bible  the  grand  instrument  of  Reforma- 
tion from  Papacy— The  sufficiency  of  the  Bible,  the  corner  stone 
of  Congregationalism,  38.     Design  of  this  Work,  39, 

CHAPTER  I. 
Origin  and  History  of  the  JYovatians,  A.  D.  251. 
First  organized  Dissenters  from  the  Catholic  church,  41.  Ap- 
proved  soon  after  the  terrible  Decian  persecution,  44.  Opposed 
the  easy  restoration  of  the  lapsed,  45.  Their  grand  principle  was 
— The  church  should  receive  and  retain  only  such  as  were  of  ex- 
emplary and  consistent  piety  ;  and  that  open  apostates  should  not 
be  restored  to  the  bosom  of  the  church,  4b.  Increase  of  Novatian- 
ism,  47.  Commendations  of  the  sect  by  Socrates,  Milner,  Wad- 
dington,  48.  Persecution  begins,  50.  Violent  and  exterminating 
in  its  character,  but  unsuccessful,  51.  The  sect  continue,  proba- 
bly, down  to  the  Lutheran  Reformation,  52. 

CHAPTER  If. 

Rise  and  History  of  the  Donatists,  A.  D.  311. 
The  current  account  of  their  origin  not  entirely  satisfactory,  54, 
55.  The  sect  arose  in  Africa— Rapidly  extends— Attempts  to  re- 
claim them  to  the  church, 56.  Persecution  resorted  to  by  Constan- 
tine,  59.  By  Constans,  60.  Julian  stops  it,  61.  Honorius  renews 
it,  61.  Augustine's  agency  in  their  persecution,  63.  Finally  ex- 
terminated, or  nearly  sf),  about  the  end  of  the  6th  century,  65. 
Commendations  of  this  sect,  66.  Sentiments,  67.  In  favor  of  ^ 
Congregational  church  organization,  for  the  sake  of  purity,  68, 

1* 


VI  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  III. 
Luciferians — Brians,  about  A.  D.  363. 
Lucifer   highly    commended   by  Milner,  70.     By  Fleury,  71. 
The  Luciferians,  "  a  sort  of  Trinitarian  Independents,"  72.     The 
schism  confined  chiefly  to   Sardinia  and   Spain,  73.     Suffer  perse- 
cution from  the  Arians  and  Orthodox,  74. 

iERius  a  native  of  Pontus,  Asia  Minor,  74.  Maintained  that 
jure  divino,  there  was  no  difference  between  Bishops  and  Presby- 
ters, 75.  "  Aimed  to  reduce  religion  to  its  primitive  simplicity" — 
Persecution,  76.  Regarded  the  Scriptures  as  a  sufficient  guide  to 
church  order,  78. 

CHAPTER  IV, 
The  Paulicians,  A.  D.  660. 
One  Constantine,  the  reputed  father  of  this  sect,  79.  The  New 
Testament  the  source  whence  their  ecclesiastical  opinions  were 
derived — What  they  were,  bO.  Their  sentiments  misrepresented 
by  enemies,  ^2.  The  sect  increases,  85.  Constantine  stoned  to 
death — Persecution  rages,.  86.  The  Paulicians  begin  to  defend 
themselves,  88.  Theodora,  attempts  to  exterminate  them — 100, 
000  butchered  by  her  orders,  89.  The  remnant  defend  themselves 
in  the  mountains,  90.  Become  the  terror  of  the  emperors — Alli- 
ance with  the  Moslems,  91.  Spread  into  Europe,  92.  Known  by 
different  names,  as  Paterini,  Cathari  or  Gazari,  Albigenses,  Sepa- 
rates— Objects  of  inquisitorial  persecution  down  to  the  Lutheran 
Reformation,  94. 

CHAPTER  V. 

The  JValdenses  and  Jllbigenses,  A.  D.  1100. 
Points  in  dispute  respecting  them,  95.  The  author's  theory  re- 
specting them — Not  so  much  independent  sects  as  the  collected 
remnants  of  several,  97,  Names  of  Dissenters  between  the  7th 
and  12th  centuries,  103.  Ecclesiastical  opinions  of  the  Waldenses 
and  Albigenses,  104.  In  several  particulars  Congregalional- 
ists,  109. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Historical  Vieic  of  Great  Britain,  from  B.  C.  55,  to  A.  D.  1350. 

Reasons  for  giving  this,  113.  Druidism  of  ancient  Briton,  115. 
Becomes  a  Roman  Province,  116.  Invasion  of  the  Scots  and 
Picts,  118.  Saxon  Conquest,  120.  Christianity  introduced — Cor- 
rupt and  superstitious  in  its  character,  122.  Danish  invasion,  126. 
Story  of  St.  Dunstan,  127.  Norman  Conquest,  129.  Incroach- 
ments  of  the  Pope,  J  30.  Thomas  a  Becket,  131.  England  be- 
comes a  vassal  to  the  Pope,  133.  Papal  tyranny  at  its  height,  135. 
Dominican  and  Benedictine  monks  introduced  to  England,  137. 
Bishop  Grosseteste  or  Greathead,  13ri.  Bradwardine  and  Fitzralph, 
139.     The  Star  of  the  Reformation,  140. 


CONTENTS.  VU 


CHAPTER  VII. 


John  Wickliffe,  the  Modern  Discoverer  of  Congregationalism , 
A.  D.  1324. 

WicklifFe's  parentage  and  early  life— High  reputation  at  the  Uni- 
versity, 141.  A  diligent  student  of  the  Bible,  142.  His  first  pub- 
lication, 143.  Opposition  to  the  Mendicant  monks,  144.  Becomes 
President  of  Beliol  College — Of  Canterbury  Hall,  146.  Defends 
Edward  HI.  and  his  parliament  for  refusing  tribute  to  the  Pope — 
Becomes  D.  D.  1372  ;  and  Theological  Professor  at  Oxford — Pub- 
lishes A  Familiar  Exposition  of  the  Ten  Commandments,  and 
Tracts  for  the  Poor,  147.  Sent  by  parliam.enton  an  embassy  to  the 
Pope,  148.  Character  and  policy  of  Edward  III,  and  the  progress 
of  liberal  principles  of  governtnent,  148.  Influence  of  WicklifFe's 
visit  to  the  Pope — Declares  open  war  against  his  holiness,  1.50. 
Wickliflfe  called  to  account — Patronized  and  protected  by  John  of 
Gaunt  and  Henry  Percy,  150  Opposition  to  Popery  beginning  to 
show  itself  in  England,  151.  Popish  bulls  issued  against  Wickliffe 
— An  attempt  to  try  and  punish  him,  defeated  by  the  populace, 
152.  The  Bible  translated  by  him,  153.  Multiplied  by  transcrib- 
ers— Circulated  over  the  kingdom  by  the  preachers  of  Wickliffism 
— Astonishing  increase  of  his  disciples,  154.  The  last  days  of 
Wickliffe,  1.55.  He  loses  the  favor  of  the  court— Why  .'  1.56.  Per- 
secution breaks  out  afresh,  157  Worn  out  with  labor,  Wickliffe 
dies  of  paralysis,  Dec.  31st,  1384,  158. 

CHAPTER  VHl. 

Ecclesiastical  Opinions  of  Wickliffe. 
1.  The  all-sufficiency  of  the  Scriptures,  159.  2.  Piety  a  pre- 
requisite to  church  membership.  3.  Christ's  laws  the  only  rule 
for  the  government  of  the  Church,  101.  4.  Priests  and  Deacons 
the  only  orders  of  clergy  recognized  in  the  New  Testament — 
Priests  and  Bishops  all  one,  162.  5.  His  opinion  about  excommu- 
nication, 164.  The  support  of  the  clergy  by  voluntary  contribu- 
tions of  their  people,  165.  Influence  of  Wickliffe  in  preparing  the 
nation  for  the  Reformation — How  he  would  probably  have  reform- 
ed the  English  Church,  168. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

The  Lollards — Persecution. 
WicklifFe's  disciples  called  Lollards,  171.  His  "  Poor  Priests" 
— Their  method  of  preaching,  etc.,  172.  Spread  of  Lollardism — 
Attempts  of  the  Pope  and  clergy  to  suppress  it,  173.  First  penal 
enactment  against  Heretics,  174.  Still  increase— Another  severe 
law,  175.  Archbishop  Chicheley's  infamous  efforts  to  suppress 
the  Lollards,  176.  Council  of  Constance — Order  Wickliffe's 
bones  to  be  dug  up  and  burned,  177.  Persecution  against  the 
Lollards  rages — Particularly  against  the  poor  priests,  178.  Lord 
Cobham,  180.  Persecution  abates  during  the  civil  wars,  183, 
Henry  VIII.  renews  the  persecution,  184. 


▼Ill  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  X. 

Era  of  the  English  Reformation— Henry  VIII.  1509—1547. 

Henry  seeks  a  divorce  from  his  queen  Catharine  of  Arragon, 
186.  First  step  towards  the  Reformation,  188.  Successive  steps, 
189.  The  hopes  of  the  Lollards  revive,  190.  Henry's  reign  capri- 
cious and  despotic — His  Faith  of  a  mongrel  character,  191.  Eccle- 
siastical opinions  of  the  Reformers.  1.  The  Scriptures  a  standard 
of  Faith,  and  generally  of  Church  order,  192.  2.  Two  orders  of 
Clergy  only  allowed  to  be  divine,  195.  No  real  distinction  be- 
tween Bishops  and  Priests.  3.  Admitted  the  right  of  the  people 
to  choose  their  own  pastors,  and  to  exercise  church  discipline,  198. 
Wote,  Sir  Thomas  Moore's  Utopia,  202. 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Reign  of  Edioard  the  VI,  1546 — The  Reformation  ended,  1553 — 
Popery  restored. 

Plan  of  government  arranged  by  Henry  VIII. — Parties  in  the 
new  government,  203.  Reformers  prevail — Persecuting  laws  re- 
laxed—  Exiles  recalled,  204.  Common  Prayer  Book,  translated 
and  arranged  from  Popish  books  of  devotion,  205.  Rights  of  pri- 
vate judgment  disregarded,  206.  The  temporizing  polity  of  the 
Reformers,  208.  Would  have  gone  further  if  they  had  dared,  209. 
A  summary  of  their  principles,  etc.,  21 1.  The  Reformation  ended, 
211.  Accession  of  Mary,  a  bigoted  Papist,  212.  Falsifies  her 
promises  213.  The  reforming  bishops  removed  and  imprisoned — 
Protestants  flee  from  England,  214.  Parliament  restore  the  form 
of  divine  service  established  by  Henry  Vlll.— Authorize  the  mar- 
riage of  Mary  with  Philip  of  Spain,  215.  Note,  Mary's  hypocrisy, 
215.  Pope's  legate  received,  and  England  reconciled  to  the  Pope, 
217.  Persecution  begins  in  good  earnest,  218.  Congregationalism 
during  Mary's  reign  in  England,  220.     On  the  Continent,  224. 

CHAPTER  XII. 
Accession  of  Elizabeth,  1558— T/je  Nonconformists— The  Puritans. 

Elizabeth  sides  with  the  Reformers— Her  cautious  policy,  227. 
Her  first  parliament  restore  the  *'  first  fruits,"  etc.  to  the  crown — 
Repeal  the  laws  against  heretics— Establish  the  queen'ssupremacy 
and  the  uniformity  of  Common  Prayer,— the  grand  instruments  of 
oppression  during  this  reign,  228.  The  nature  and  operation  of 
these  acts  described,  229.  The  Nonconformists— who  they  were  ; 
and  their  principles,  231.  Origin  of  the  Puritans,  233.  The  dif- 
ference between  the  court  reformers  and  the  Puritans,  234.  Per- 
secution of  the  Puritans  begins  1563,  236.  Archbishop  Parker's 
violence,  238.  Puritanism  increases,  at  Cambridge  and  among  the 
common  people,  238.  The  Era  of  Separation,  239.  The  queen 
dangerously  ill— The  prisons  full  of  Puritans,  240.  The  effects  of 
this  persecution — A  retrospective  view  of  English  church  history, 
241. 


CONTENTS.  IX 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

Robert  Broicne — The  Broicnists,  1580. 

Browne  the  first  open  and  persecuted  advocate  of  Congregation- 
alism of  this  reign,  2411  The  same  principles  entertained  by  others 
who  had  no  connection  with  Browne,  243.  A  sketch  of  Browne's 
life,  etc.  244.  His  sentiments,  247.  First  separate  Congregation  of 
Brownists,  1583,  248  — Broken  up — Flee  to  Holland — Dissensions 
among  them — Browne  returns  to  England,  and  dies  a  Rector  in  the 
church  of  England,  249.  Progress  of  Brownism — Thacker  and 
Copping  executed,  1583,  251. 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Tlie  Martyrdom  of  Barroice,  Greemcood,  and  Penry,  1593. 

Henry  Barrowe,  not  a  disciple  of  Browne — A  lawyer,  a  man 
of  genius,  learning,  wit,  and  moral  courage,  252.  His  religious 
sentiments — Arrested,  tried,  and  imprisoned,  253.  Released,  and 
re-imprisoned  under  circumstances  of  extreme  cruelty,  254.  His 
writings,  255.  Twice  brought  out  of  prison,  in  expectation  of  im- 
mediate death,  257.  Archbishop  Whitgift  intercepts  a  letter  ad- 
dressed to  the  queen;  and  keeps  her  in  ignorance  of  Barrowe's 
case,  258.  Barrowe  and  Greenwood  executed  May  Gth  1593 — Tes- 
timony in  their  favor,of  Dr.  Reynolds  and  Earl  of  Cumberland,  258. 
John  Grecnioood,  a  clergyman  of  learning,  and  talent,  and  fearless 
piety — Arrested  at  midnight,  and  dragged  from  his  bed  to  prison, 
259.  His  writings,  2G().  Protests  against  beinof  called  a  Donatist 
or  a  Brownist — His  meaning,  2G1 .  In  favor  of  an  entire  separa- 
tion from  the  church  of  England,  262.  The  Separatists — The  im- 
portance of  a  name,  2G3.  Martyrdom  of  Rev.  John  Penry — Some 
account  of  him— A  graduate  of  Oxford—"  A  pious  and  learned 
man" — Not  the  author  of  the  Mar-Prelate  pamphlets — Arrested, 
265.  Condemned  for  sentiments  found  in  private  papers,  which 
were  never  published  by  him,  266.  Penry's  Protestation — An  in- 
teresting account  of  himself,  266.  His  sentiments,  268.  Penry's 
dying  address  to  his  Christian  brethren,  269.  Hanged  in  haste — 
Forbidden  to  address  the  people — The  last  of  the  C'ongregational 
martyrs — Other  punishments  substituted  for  hanging,  275.  Note, 
respecting  other  sufferers,  275. 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Tlie  first  Organized  Church  of  the  Separatists,  1592. 

The  first  church  organized  in  Nicholas'  lane,  London,  Oct.  1592, 
' — Buck's  account  of  the  matter,  277.  Their  secret  meetings  de- 
scribed, 279.  The  church  discovered,  and  fifty-six  of  their  num- 
ber imprisoned,  280.  The  whole  number  in  the  London  prisons, 
72 — Their  sufferings,  281.  Seventeen  or  eighteen  die  in  prison, 
from  "  miserable  usage'' — The  Protestant  bishops  of  Elizabeth's 
reign  compared   with  the   Popish   bishops  of  Mary's  reign,  282. 


CONTENTS. 


The  petitions  and    protests   of  the  prisoners,  283.     The 
Roger  Rippon,  with  its  inscriptions, 284.     The  houses  of  1 
ratilts  broken  open  and  ransacked    in   the  nioht,  etc. — Fi 


The  corpse  of 
'  the  Sepa- 
"""alsely  ac- 
cused—Note, The  advocates  of  civil  and  religious  liberty  purposely 
confounded  by  the  court,  285.  A  summary  view  of  the  character, 
and  sufferings  of  the  Separatists,  286. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

The  Conforming  Puritans  mid  the  Separatists— Hie  banishment  of  the 
Separatists, 
An  important  period  of  our  history — A  view  of  the  different  re- 
ligious parties  necessary  to  understand  this  period,  2.^9.  The  Sep- 
aratists and  Puritans— their  differences,  2'. <0.  Their  different  mea- 
sures, 2!>1.  Failure  of  all  efforts  to  obtain  a  reformation  of  the  hie- 
rarchy, 292.  The  Exile  .Act — Oppressive  and  cruel,  2!i3.  Increase 
of  the  Separatists,  or  Brownists— Sir  W.  Raleigh  estimates  them  at 
near  2l),000  in  1593,  294.  Separatists  abjure  England,  and  flee  to 
Holland ,  295.  Francis  Johnson — Pastor  of  the  first  church  of  Sep- 
aratists— He  and  his  church  in  Amsterdam.  2i'().  "Loaded  with 
reproaches,  despised  and  afflicted  by  all"— Henry  Ainsworth,  their 
teacher — His  profound  scholarship— His  poverty  and  suffering — 
The  conduct  of  the  Hollanders  explained,  297.  Separatists  pub-' 
lish  a  Confession  of  their  Faith,  1598 — The  same  for  substance, 
with  Clyftons,  published  in  1589— Dissensions  among  the  Exiles, 
298.  Robinson's  and  Ainsworth's  remarks,  299.  Opponents  and 
enemies  —Junius — Arminius  —  White —  Lawne— Fairlander,  300. 
Broughton  — Hall  — Smyth,  301.  The  indomitable  courage,  pro- 
founcTlearnintr,  scriptural  knowledge  of  the  leaders  of  the  Separa- 
tion, 301.     Other  Separatist  churches  in  Holland,  302. 

CHAPTER  XVll. 

Death  of  Elizabeth— j^rcession  of  James  /,  ]6Q3.— Separatists  Peti- 
tion—  Hampton  Court  Conference. 
Chano-es  in  England— Elizabeth  declining,  302.  Expectation  of 
a  Presbyterian  monarch  allays  the  persecuting  zeal  of  the  prelates — 
Elizabeth  dies,  March  24th^  1003,  in  the  70th  year  of  her  age,  and 
the  45th  of  her  leign— James  VI.  of  Scotland  succeeds  her,  303. 
The  religious  parties  of  the  kingdom  all  have  hopes,  as  well  as 
fears,  304.  The  Episcopalians  flatter  him  into  their  views—*'  Mil- 
lenary Petition"— Petition  of  the  Separatists,  305.  Address  three 
petitions,  etc  to  James  for  toleration^All  unheeded,  306.  Hamp- 
ton Court  Conference,  between  the  prelates  and  the  Puritans  com- 
mences, Jan.  14th,  1604— The  king  the  principal  speaker,  307. 
Browbeats  and  abuses  the  Puritans,  308.  A  royal  Proclamation, 
March  5th,  1604,  requiring  entire  conformity  to  Common  Prayer 
worship,  etc. —The  Convocation  of  March  29th,  1604,  denounces 
excommunication  on  the  advocates  of  Church  Reform,  310.  The 
canons  of  this  Convocation  were  the  instruments  of  persecution 
and  cruelty  with  which  the  Puritans  and  Separatists  were  long 
harrassed,  311. 


CONTENTS.  XI 

CHAPTER  XVIll. 

John  Robinson  and  his  Jissociates. 
John  Robinson  and  a  Separatist  church  in  the  North  of  England 
— This  charch  the  fountain  head  of  modern  Congregationalism — 
Mr.  Robinson's  birth,  education,  and  character,  313.  First  settled 
at  Norwich,  Norfolk  County  —  A  conforming  Puritan— Harrassed 
by  the  bishops  and  "  urged  with  subscription" — Examines  more 
carefully  the  subject  of  church  polity — Becomes  a  Separatist,  314. 
Governor  Bradford's  account  of  the  Nonconformists  in  the  North 
of  England,  315.  Organized  into  a  church,  about  1602— Increase — 
Another  church  formed — Persecution  renewed,  310.  Mr.  Smyth, 
Clyfton  and  Brewster — The  churches  propose  to  remove  to  Hol- 
land— Bradford's  account,  317.  Treachery  practised  upon  them — 
A  part  of  one  of  the  churches,  with  Mr.  Smyth,  reaches  Amsterdam 
— Mr.  Smyth  becomes  an  Arminian  Baptist— Becomes  the  founder 
of  the  General  Baptist  denomination — Immerses  himself,  and  then 
his  companions  ;  and  thus  begins  the  new  Sect,  318.  J  .  Robinson's 
testimony  to  this  effect,  note,  319.  These  movements  occasion 
trouble  among  the  exiles — The  old  London  church,  now  in  Am- 
sterdam, disagree  upon  a  question  of  church  government — Clyfton 
sides  with  Johnson,  against  Ainsworth — The  remainder  of  Mr. 
Clyfton's  church,  now  in  England,  propose  removing  to  Holland, 
1G08,  p.  320.  The  trouble  experienced  by  them  in  getting  out  of 
England,  321.  At  length  succeed  —  Mr.  Robinson  and  Elder 
Brewster  the  last  to  leave  — State  of  things  at  Amsterdam,  322. 
Induced  to  remove  to  Leyden,  for  the  sake  of  peace,  etc.  1608 — 9 
— Mr.  Clyfton,  and  some  others  probably,  remain  at  Amsterdam, 
323  JVote — Correction  of  Belknap  and  others  respecting  Mr.  Clyf- 
ton's history.  He  removed  from  England  and  died  in  Amsterdam, 
sometime  after  1612. 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

Mr.  Robinson  s  church  in  Leyden — His  Writings. 

Self-denying  efforts  of  the  brethren  to  obtain  a  subsistence  in 
Leyden,  324.  Their  honest  industry  secures  the  confidence  of  the 
Dutch — Mr.  Robinson  s  controversy  ioith  Hall  and  Bernard  about 
separation,  etc.  32.5.  Quotations  illustrative  of  Mr.  Robinson's 
principles  of  church  polity — Introduction — Power  of  the  church, 
327.  State  of  the  question,  328.  Church  polity  —  Authority  of 
church  officers,  329.  Of  the  brethren— Old  Test,  and  New  Test, 
churches — Women's  rights,  330  Gathering  of  a  church — Disci- 
pline of  officers,  331.  Relation  between  pastor  and  people,  332. 
Ordination,  333.  Controversy  icith  Episcopius  the  Jirminian,  333. 
The  Baptismal  Controversy,  334.  Analysis  and  extracts,  illustra- 
ting Mr.  Robinson's  views,  335.  On  the  democratical  or  popular 
character  of  Congregationalism,  336.  Prophesying — Choice  of  of- 
ficers, 338 — Church  censures,  339 — Church  meetings  on  the  Lord's 
day,  340.  Re-baptism — What  is  baptism?  341.  Infant  Baptism, 
342.     "  The   People  s  Flea  for  the  exercise  of  Prophecy,''  343. — - 


Xll  CONTEIMTS. 

Robinson's  "  ^^pology,"  343.  Analysis  and  Extracts — The  visible 
church,  344.  Church  officers,  the  nature  and  extent  of  their 
power — The  church,  346.  Are  elders  "the  church-representa- 
tives:"— Apostolic  example,  347.  Democracy,  34d.  "Of  the 
celebration  of  marriage  by  the  pastor  of  the  church,"  349.  Para- 
ble of  the  tares,  in  application  to  church  order,  etc.  explained,  350. 
Conclusion,  exhibiting  his  excellent  and  devout  spirit,  351.  JVote, 
containing  a  condensed  view  of  Mr.  Robinson's  opinions,  353.  ^'Ji 
Defence  of  the  Synod  of  D art,''  354.  Robinson's  Devotional  and 
Practical  Writings,  354.  His  Posthuvious  Works,  355.  The  author's 
reason  for  this  protracted  account  of  John  Robinson  and  his  works, 
358.  Tne  Congregational  practice  of  seeking  advice,  in  cases  of 
difficulty  from  sister  churches,  how  developed,  359.  The  Leyden 
church,  their  harmony,  and  their  reciprocated  love  of  Mr.  Robin- 
son— A  summary  of  their  belief,  361.  God's  dealings  with  this 
church,  and  His  design,  363. 


APPENDIX,  No.  I. 

"  Ji  True  Description,  out  of  the  Word  of  God,  of  the  Visible  Church^ 
1589.  Written,  probably,  by  Clyfton  or  Smyth,  the  predeces- 
sors of  John  Robinson  in  the  church  which  finally  emigrated  to 
New^  England,  p.  364. 

No.  II. 

Rev.  John  Robinson  s  Ansicer  to  Joseph  Hall ,  shoicing  the  grounds 
on  71'hicli  the  separation  icas  made  from  the  Churdi  of  England^ 
p.  373. 


ERRATA. 

Those  who  know  the  extreme  difficulty — not  to  say  impossibili- 
ty— of  printing  with  entire  accuracy,  will  excuse  a  few  typogra- 
phical errors  ;  especially,  when  told,  that  the  author  and  his  prin- 
ter have  not  been  upon  speaking  terms  during  the  progress  of  the 
work,  being  about  a  hundred  miles  apart. 

Page  67,  line  19,  for  Imperitore  read  Imperitori. 

"  167,  "  16,  "  rcere  "  even  for. 

"  202,  "  11,  "  wo^dd  "  could. 

"  258,  "  11,  "  1693  "  1593. 

"  300,  "  31,  "  same  "  semi. 

"  302,  "  13,  "  Jirkheim  "  .^niheim. 

i'  354,  <'  3,  "  Mmter  "  Murton. 


INTRODUCTION. 


In  the  following  pages  it  is  proposed  to  trace  the  history 
of  Congregationalism  from  about  A.  -D.  250  to  the  present 
time.  This  volume  may,  therefore,  be  considered  as  a 
continuation  of  "  A  View  of  Congregationalism,''''  a  work 
submitted  to  the  public  a  few  months  since  ;  in  which  the 
principles,  doctrines,'  practice,  and  early  history,  together 
with  some  of  the  supposed  advantages  of  Congregational- 
ism were  briefly  detailed.  Those  who  have  read  that 
work,  need  not  be  told  what  are  the  peculiarities  of  this 
system  of  church  government :  but,  as  this  volume  may 
fall  into  the  hands  of  some  persons  who  are  not  acquainted 
with  our  denominational  peculiarities,  it  may  be  desirable 
to  enumerate  the  leading  principles  and  doctrines  of  Con- 
gregationalism. 

The  principles  may  be  thus  stated  : — The  Scriptures 
are  an  infallible  guide  to  the  essentials  of  church  order  and 
discipline. — A  Christian  church  is  a  voluntary  association 
of  persons  professing  repentance  for  sin  and  faith  in  Jesus 
Christ,  united  together  by  a  solemn  covenant  for  the  wor- 
ship of  God  and  the  celebration  of  religious  ordinances. — 
This  company  should  ordinarily  consist  of  no  more  than  can 
conveniently  and  statedly  meet  together  for  religious  pur- 
2 


14  INTRODUCTION. 

poses. — To  this  assembly  of  professing  Cliristians,  united 
by  a  covenant,  and  statedly  meeting  for  church  purposes, 
all  executive  ecclesiastical  or  church  power  is  intrusted  by 
Jesus  Christ,  the  great  Head  of  the  Church. 

The  most  important  doctrines  of  this  system  are 
these  : — The  Scriptures  recognize  but  two  orders  of  perma- 
nent church  officers,  viz.  Elders  (sometimes  called  pastors, 
overseers,  or  bishops)  and  Deacons. — There  should  be  an 
entire  ecclesiastical  equality  among  all  Christian  elders, 
pastors,  overseers  or  bishops. — Councils,  consisting  of  pas- 
tors and  lay  delegates  from  the  churches,  have  no  juridical 
authority  ;  being  simply  advisory  or  suasory  bodies. — Con- 
gregational churches,  though  independent  of  each  other  so 
far  as  "  their  own  procedure  in  worship,  as  well  as  disci- 
pline" is  concerned,  yet  should  hold  themselves  ready  to 
give  account  to  sister  churches  of  their  faith  and  religious 
practices. 

Such  are  the  prominent  outlines  of  the  denomination 
whose  history  we  are  now  to  consider.  Such,  we  suppose, 
was  the  polity  of  the  churches  founded  by  Christ  and  his 
apostles,  and  for  more  than  two  hundred  years  substantially 
retained  by  all  Christendom.  The  proof  of  this,  furnished 
by  the  Scriptures,  the  Apostolic  Fathers,  and  the  testimony 
of  learned  men  of  different  denominations,  will  be  found  in 
the  work  already  alluded  to — "  A  View  of  Congregation' 
alism''^ — and  need  not  be  here  recapitulated. 

This  simple  and  perfect  system  of  church  order,  drawn 
in  oudine  by  Christ,  and  filled  up  in  detail  by  his  inspired 
apostles,  was  gradually  defaced  and  deformed  by  the  pride 
and  ambition  of  the  clergy,  aided  by  the  inattention  of  the 
churches  to  their  Christian  rights  and  privileges  ;  and,  in 
lieu  of  it,  the  complicated  and  corrupt  system  of  Antichrist 
was  introduced,  with  its  pope  and  cardinals,  its  archbishops 


INTRODUCTION.  15 

and  bishops,  its  arch-presbyters  arid  presbyters,  its  arch- 
deacons and  deacons — to  say  nothing  of  the  sub-deacons, 
and  acolythi,  and  ostiarii,  and  lectors,  and  exorcists,  and 
copiatae — all  whom  were  more  or  less  essential  to  the  per- 
fection of  that  system  of  church  order,  and  government,  and 
worship,  which  was  foisted  upon  the  world  as  alone  true 
and  infallible.* 

Between  the  order  of  Christ's  house,  and  that  of  Anti- 
christ's, there  is  an  immense  difference  ; — indeed,  there  is 
no  resemblance  whatever.  And  the  inquiry  may  very 
naturally  arise.  How  could  a  change,  so  entire,  be  wrought 
in  the  polity  of  the  churches  ?  Some  have  urged  this  ques- 
tion as  a  capital  objection  to  the  belief,  that  Congregation- 
alism was,  for  substance,  the  system  of  apostolical  church 
government.f  If  it  was,  say  they,  how  could  such  a  change 
be  brought  about  ?  And  why  were  not  these  encroach- 
ments protested  against  and  resisted  ? 

I  expect  to  show  in  the  body  of  this  work,  that  these  en- 
croachments were  protested  against  and  resisted,  even  unto 

*  Some  idea  of  the  early  corruption  of  the  churches,  and  of  the 
cumbersome  and  unscriptural  machinery  which  was  introduced 
into  them,  may  he  formed  from  the  account  which  is  given  us  of 
tlie  church  at  Rome,  about  the  middle  of  the  third  century.  Cor- 
nelius, bishop  of  Rome,  writing  to  Fabius,  bishop  of  Antiocii,  gives 
the  following  list  of  his  clergy,  etc.  "  There  are  six  and  forty 
priests,  seven  deacons,  seven  suh-deacons,  tico  and  forty  acliolites  [a 
sort  of  waiter  to  the  bishop],  two  and  fifty  exorcists  [persons  em- 
ployed to  expel  evil  spirits],  and  readers  [i.  e.  of  the  Scriptures,  in 
public  worship]  icith  porters."  All  these  were  subject  to  one  bish- 
op, and  were  regarded  as  necessary  to  a  single  church  of  the  high- 
est rank  and  dignity. — See  Eusebius'  Ecc.  Hist.  Lib.  VI.  Chap.  42. 
or  Milner,  Cent.  111.  Chap.  9. 

t  The  celebrated  Episcopal  writer,  Stillingfleet,  takes  this 
ground  in  his  ''  Unreasonableness  of  Separation," — See  Owen's 
answer  to  him. 


16  INTRODUCTION. 

blood.  In  this  Introduction,  I  propose  to  speak,  very  brief- 
ly, of  the  manner  in  which  this  change  in  the  pohty  of  the 
churches  was  introduced.  I  am  disposed  to  undertake 
this,  from  the  conviction  that  this  survey  will  forcibly  illus- 
trate the  importance  of  holding  fast  the  great  principles  of 
apostolic  church  order,  while  it  will  prepare  the  reader  for 
the  historical  details  which  may  follow  in  the  sequel. 

It  has  already  been  intimated,  that  the  pride  and  amhi- 
iion  of  the  clergy  and  the  carelessness  of  the  people  were 
the  main  springs  in  the  machinery  which  overturned  the 
apostolic  order  and  discipline  of  the  Christian  churches. 

This  machinery  began  its  operations  at  a  very  early  peri- 
od ;  yea,  even  before  the  apostles  were  in  their  graves.  Paul 
doubtless  anticipated  the  changes,  which  have  since  taken 
place  in  the  order  of  the  churches,  when  he  said  to  the 
elders  of  the  church  of  Ephesus  :  "  1  know  this,  that  after 
my  departing  shall  grievous  wolves  enter  in  among  you, 
not  sparing  the  flock." — Acts  20:  29.  John  experienced 
the  opposition  of  one  of  these  "  wolves,"  in  the  person  of 
Diotrephes  ;  who  so  loved  "  to  have  the  preeminence"  over 
the  church  of  which  he  was  pastor,  that  he  rejected  even 
the  apostolic  authority  of  John  himself  "  I  wrote  unto  the 
church,"  or,  I  would  have  written — says  John  to  the  belo- 
ved Gaius— "  but  Diotrephes,  who  loveth  to  have  the  pre- 
eminence among  them,  receiveth  us  not."*  Clement,  "  the 
almost  apostle,"  confirms  the  belief,  that  the  apostles  anti- 
cipated the  workings  of  ambition  among  the  clergy,  when 
he  says  :  "Our  apostles  knew  by  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that 
there  should  contentions  arise  upon  the  account  of  the  min- 
istry," or,  "  about  the  name  of  the  bishoprick,"t  or,  episco- 
pacy itself  These  contentions  about  the  episcopal  office — 
or,  perhaps,  about  that  presidency  among  the  elders  and 

*  III  Ep.  John,  9th  v.     See  also  McKnight,  in  loc, 
t  Clement's  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians,  §  44. 


INTRODUCTION.  17 

over  the  churches  which  was  early  introduced* — was  doubt- 
less aggravated,  if  not  originated,  by  the  manifest  disposi- 
tion of  the  members  of  the  churches  to  attach  themselves 
to  their  favorite  preachers.  Even  in  the  days  of  the  apos- 
tles, this  leaven  of  unrighteousness  began  to  work.  At 
Corinth,  for  example,  the  church  were  strongly  inclined  to 
break  into  parties,  to  arrange  themselves  under  distinct 
leaders.  One  said,  "  I  am  of  Paul ;  and  another,  I  am  of 
Apollos  ;"  hence  arose  "  envying,  and  strife,  and  divi- 
sions."—See  1  Cor.  1:  3—7. 

Now,  if  this  partizan  spirit  existed  at  so  early  a  period, 
in  the  churches,  and  if  there  was  a  disposition  to  make  even 
the  apostles  themselves  the  heads  of  factions,  we  need  not 
be  surprised  at  the  apprehensions  of  those  holy  men  for  the 
future  peace  and  prosperity  of  the  churches ;  or  that  after- 
wards this  partizan  spirit  should  be  taken  advantage  of  by 
ambitious  men,  to  promote  their  own  selfish  ends,  regard- 
less of  the  interests  or  rights  of  the  churches. 

To  counteract  these  workings  of  the  "  mystery  of  iniqui- 
ty," the  apostles  did  what  in  them  lay  ;  by  setting  in  order 
the  churches,  and  by  ordaining  elders  in  every  church  ;  by 
giving  directions — as  Clement  tells  us  they  did — "how, 
when  they  [the  teachers  set  over  them  by  the  apostles] 
should  die,  other  chosen  and  approved  men  should  succeed 
in  the  ministry  ;"  and  also  by  warnings,  and  admonitions, 
and  exhortations,  and  counsels,  and  advice,  to  induce  the 
churches  to  stand  fast  in  the  liberty  wherewith  Christ  had 
made  them  free. 

Notwithstanding  all  this,  the  churches  began  to  vary 
somewhat  from  the  apostolic  order,  before  the  close  of  the 
second  century— yea,  within  the  lifetime  of  some  who  had 
been  contemporary  with  the  apostles  themselves.     In  the 

*  See  Mosheim,  Cent.  I,  P.  II.  Chap.  2.  §  11. 
2* 


18  INTEODUCTION. 

third  century  very  extensive  corruptions  spread  among 
them.  These  prepared  the  way  for  the  establishment  of 
Constantino's  hierarchy,  in  the  fourth  century  ;  which  made 
way  for  the  abounding  errors  and  corruptions  of  the  three 
succeeding  centuries,  and  the  enthronement  of  the  "  Man 
OF  Sin"  in  the  eighth  century. 

The  very  excellencies  for  ichich  the  primitive  elders 
were  distinguished,  were  an  occasion  of  corruption  to  the 
churches. 

This  may  seem  a  paradoxical  assertion.  It  will,  never- 
theless, be  found  susceptible  of  demonstration,  that  the  vir- 
tues of  the  Christian  pastors  of  the  first  and  second  centuries 
were  the  innocent  occasion  of  corruption  to  the  churches. 

To  be  a  Christian  pastor  in  those  "  perilous  times"  was 
to  take  the  front  rank  in  danger ;  for  the  officers  of  the 
churches  were  the  first  to  be  sought  after  when  persecution 
arose  "  because  of  the  word."  To  men  who  were  ready 
to  lay  down  their  lives  for  the  cause  of  Christ,  the  church- 
es reasonably  supposed  that  they  might  safely  trust  their 
dearest  rights.  They  would  naturally  choose  to  be  guided 
by  the  opinions,  and  governed  by  the  wishes  of  such  men. 
They  would  be  slow  to  think  or  speak  of  their  own  eccle- 
siastical rights.*     Feeling  that  all  was  safe  in  the  hands  of 

*  Ecclesiastical  history  furnishes  abundant  evidence  of  the  ex- 
istence of  this  veneration.  For  example,  the  church  of  Smyrna, 
in  their  relation  of  tlie  martyrdom  of  their  venerable  pastor,  Poly- 
carp,  tell  us  :  *•  When  the  fuel  vi'as  ready,  Polycarp  laying  aside 
all  his  upper  garments,  and  undoing  his  girdle,  tried  also  to  pull 
off  his  clothes  underneath,  ickich  aforetime  he  teas  not  icont  to  do ; 
forasmucltj  as  aiicays,  every  one  of  the  Christians  that  icas  about 
him  contended  who  should  soonest  touch  hisfcsh.'" — Apostolical  Fa- 
thers, p.  245.  That  this  veneration  for  religious  teachers  was  not 
unknown  in  the  churches  at  a  later  period,  is  obvious  from  the  ac- 
count given  us  of  the  celebrated  Martin,  bishop  of  Tours,  in  the 


INTRODUCTION. 


19 


their  devoted  and  venerated  pastors,  they  would  readily  dis- 
miss all  anxious  care ;  and  it  would  be  but  reasonable  to 
suppose,  that  ere  long  it  would  be  forgotten  that  the 
churches  had  any  claim  to  those  special  rights  and  imnnu- 
nities  which  they  had  so  long  neglected  to  exercise. 

The  difficulty  and  danger  in  meeting  together  for  the 
transaction  of  church  business,  during  the  seasons  of  perse- 
cution to  which  the  churches  were  frequently  exposed  for 
more  than  two  hundred  years  after  Christ,  would  be  an  ad- 
ditional reason  for  leaving  the  management  of  their  affairs 
more  entirely  in  the  hands  of  their  officers  than  was  origi- 
nally contemplated. 

The  extra-scriptural  authority  thus  given  to  their  reli- 
gious teachers,  as  an  evidence  of  affectionate  confidence, 
and  to  some  extent  made  necessary  by  the  peculiar  cir- 

fourth  century.  '^  This  personage  was  in  the  habit  of  frequenting 
the  palace,  [of  the  emperor  Maxircas],  where  he  was  always  enter- 
tained by  tlie  empress,  who  not  only  hung  upon  his  lips  for  instruc- 
tion, but,  in  imitation  of  the  penitent  in  the  Gospels,  actually  bath- 
ed his  feet  with  her  tears,  and  wiped  them  with  her  hair;  and  he 
who  had  never  before  sustained  the  touch  of  a  Avoman,  could  not 
avoid  her  assiduities.  She,  unmindful  of  the  state  and  dignity 
and  splendors  of  her  royal  rank,  lay  prostrate  at  the  feet  of  ]Martin, 
whence  she  could  not  be  removed  until  she  had  obtained  permis- 
sion, first  from  her  husband,  and  then  by  his  aid  from  the  bishop, 
to  v/ait  upon  him  at  table  as  his  servant,  without  the  assistance  of 
any  menial.  The  blessed  man  could  no  longer  resist  her  impor- 
tunities;  and  the  empress  herself  made  the  requisite  preparations 
of  couch,  and  table,  and  cookery  (in  temperate  style),  and  water 
for  the  hands  ;  and  as  he  sat,  stood  aloof,  and  motionless,  in  the 
manner  proper  to  a  slave  ;  with  due  modesty  and  humility,  mixing 
and  presenting  the  wine.  And  when  the  meal  was  ended,  reve- 
rently collected  the  crumbs,  which  she  deemed  of  higher  worth 
than  the  delicacies  of  a  royal  banquet," — Sulpitius'  Life  of  St. 
Martin,  quoted  in  "  Natural  History  of  Enthusiasm,"  pp.189,  190. 
See  also  Milner's  Hist,  of  the  Church,  Cent.  IV.  Chap.  14. 


20  INTRODUCTION. 

cumstances  of  the  churches,  was  at  first,  without  doubt, 
faithfully  exercised  ;  but,  in  process  of  time — and  not  a 
very  long  time  either  —  that  authority  which  had  been 
yielded  by  the  churches  as  a  loon,  would  be  claimed  by 
the  clergy  as  a  right ;  and  most  eagerly,  by  those  most 
likely  to  abuse  it. 

Tlte  superiority  icJiich  the  city  churches  assumed  over 
those  in  the  country^  was  another  step  in  the  progress  of 
deterioration. 

The  first  churches  were,  for  the  most  part,  planted  in 
cities  and  populous  towns.  These  had  elders  or  bish- 
ops placed  over  them  by  the  direction  of  the  apostles. 
To  their  ministrations  the  scattered  Christians  in  the  coun- 
try around  resorted.  But,  as  these  latter  became  more 
numerous,  they  desired  the  occasional  or  the  stated  minis- 
trations of  the  gospel  among  themselves.  Instead  then, 
of  being  formed  into  separate  churches,  as  they  should 
have  been,  the  city  church  supplied  them  with  one  of  her 
elders.  Consequently,  both  he  and  his  rural  flock  regard- 
ed themselves  as  belonging  to  the  mother  church  ;  and  nat- 
urally paid  that  deference  to  her  and  her  teachers  which 
their  dependent  relation  suggested.  And  when  the  city 
churches  came  to  have  presidents, — who  were  stated  mod- 
erators among  the  elders  and  general  supervisors  of  the 
affairs  of  the  churches, — these,  of  course,  exercised  a  su- 
pervision and  control  over  the  rural  congregations  and  their 
elders,  as  parts  of  the  city  church.  In  this  way.  Diocesan 
episcopacy  was  gradually  and  imperceptibly  introduced. 
This  would  have  been  the  natural  result  of  causes  like  those 
just  alluded  to,  in  any  country  ;  but  more  especially  in  a 
country  governed  like  that  in  which  Christianity  was  first 
planted.  In  the  Roman  Empire,  the  capital  cities  were 
looked  to  as  the  sources  of  political  power  ;  being  the  pla- 
ces where  the  governing  officers  of  the  province  resided. 


INTRODUCTION. 


21 


and  whence  issued  the  decrees  which  controlled  the  pro- 
vince. 

Another  step  in  the  path  of  declension,  was  the  introduc- 
tion of  synods,  or  general  councils^  ivith  cmthority  to  make 
laws  for  the  government  of  the  churches. 

The  first  appearance  of  these  assemblies  was  about 
A.  D.  170  or  173.  At  first  they  were  composed  of  the 
representatives  of  the  independent  churches,  elected  for  the 
express  purpose  of  deliberating  in  behalf  and  in  the  room 
of  these  churches.  It  was  not  long,  however,  before  they 
assumed  the  right  to  act  in  their  own  name.  These  bodies, 
of  course,  needed-  a  moderator;  and  as  they  generally  as- 
sembled in  the  capital  of  the  province,*  who  so  suitable  for 
a  moderator  as  the  president  of  the  city  church  ;  an  ofBcer 
who  began  now  to  be  called  lishop^  to  distinguish  him  from 
his  co-equals,  the  elders.  This  honor,  at  first  conferred  as 
an  act  of  courtesy,  would  be  expected  as  a  matter  of  pro- 
priety, and  finally  claimed  as  an  ofBcial  right.  In  this  way 
the  office  of  Metropolitan  or  Diocesan  bishop  was,  proba- 
bly, introduced  into  the  churchcs.f 

Another  way  in  which  these  synods  corrupted  the  origi- 
nal order  of  the  churches,  was,  by  taking  to  themselves  a 
legislative  and  juridical  authority. 

It  was  natural  that  the  churches  should  pay  great  defe- 
rence to  the  opinions  and  decisions  of  these  bodies,  compo- 
sed as  they  usually  were,  of  the  bishops  of  an  entire  pro- 
vince ;  and,  it  was  not  at  all  strange  that  their  decisions 

*  Gibl)on  tells  us  :  "  It  was  soon  established  as  a  custom  and  as 
a  law  that  the  bishops  of  the  independent  churches  should  meet  in 
the  capital  of'ihe  province  at  the  stated  periods  of  spring  and  au- 
tumn,"— Decline  and  Fall,  Vol.  1.  Chap,  15, 

t  See  Mosheim,  Cent.  II.  Part  II.  Chap.  2,  Waddington,  pp. 
43 — 45,  Harper's  Edition.  Gibbon's  Decline  and  Fall,  Vol.  I. 
Chap.  15.  p.  274,  Harper's  Ed. 


22  INTRODUCTION. 

should  gradually  assume  the  form  of  canons^  or  rules,  for 
the  government  of  the  represented  churches  ;  for  rulers — 
ecclesiastical  as  well  as  civil — will  generally  assume  author- 
ity as  fast  as  the  people  will  yield  it. 

The  doctrine  that  the  iimiisiers  of  the  Christian  church 
tcere  the  successors  of  the  Jewish  priesthood^  which,  if  not 
originated  in  the  second  century,  was  then  most  success- 
fully inculcated  by  the  clergy,  contributed  materially  to  the 
great  work  of  corrupting  the  churches. 

If  the  clergy  were  the  successors  of  the  Jewish  priests, 
why  then,  of  course,  a  resemblance  between  the  two  was 
to  be  looked  for.  The  bishops,  or  presiding  elders,  were 
made  to  answer  to  the  high  priest,  the  presbyters  or  elders 
to  the  priests,  and  the  deacons  to  the  levites.  "  This  idea," 
says  Mosheim,  "  being  once  introduced  and  approved, 
drew  after  it  other  errors."  Among  which  was,  that  it 
gave  an  official  elevation  and  sacredness  to  the-  clergy 
which  Christ  never  authorized. 

Another  effect  of  this  new  doctrine  was,  to  open  the  way 
for  the  exaction  of  the  first  fruits  and  tithes,  for  the  support 
of  the  clergy.  For  surely,  if  they  were  successors  to  the 
Levitical  priesthood,  it  was  but  reasonable  that  they  should 
claim  the  tithes  and  first  fruits,  as  means  of  support.  Nei- 
ther did  they  stop  here  ;  but  "  argued,  that  because  the 
bishops,  presbyters,  and  deacons,  were  the  high-priests, 
priests,  and  levites  of  a  superior,  a  more  heavenly  and 
spiritual  dispensation,  they  ought  to  possess  more  of  the 
unrighteous  mammon  ;  that  is,  more  earthly  treasures,  and 
greater  temporal  power"  than  did  the  ministers  of  the  an- 
cient church.  "  And,  what  is  still  more  extraordinary,  by 
such  wretched  reasoning  the  bulk  of  mankind  were  con- 
vinced."* 

*  See   Campbell's  Lee.  on  Kcc.  Hist.  L.  X.  first  part.     Also, 


INTRODUCTION.  23 

By  these  several  steps,*  the  power  of  the  clergy  was 
greatly  enhanced  at  the  expense  of  the  rights  and  privileges 
of  the  churches  ;  and  yet,  so  gradually,  that  those  who 
were  most  affected  by  it,  were  least  sensible  of  the  process. 

There  is  much  truth,  doubtless,  in  what  Dr.  Owen  says 
on  this  point :  "  This  declension  of  the  churches  from  their 
primitive  order  and  institution,  is  discoverable,  rather  by 
measuring  the  distance  between  what  it  left,  and  what  it 
arrived  unto,  than  by  express  instances  of  it.  But  yet,  is 
it  not  altogether  like  unto  that  of  a  ship  at  sea,  but  rather 
like  unto  the  way  of  a  serpent  on  a  rock,  which  leaves 
some  slime  in  all  its  turnings  and  windings,  whereby  it 
may  be  traced." — Inquiry,  etc.  Pref  p.  20,  21. 

Mr.  Waddington  very  justly  remarks :  "  It  is  true  that 
the  first  operations  of  corruption  are  slow,  and  generally 
imperceptible,  so  that  it  is  not  easy  to  ascertain  the  precise 
moment  of  its  commencement.  But  a  candid  inquirer  can- 
not avoid  perceiving  that,  about  the  end  of  the  second,  and 
the  beginning  of  the  third  century,  some  changes  had  taken 
place  in  the  ecclesiastical  system  which  indicated  a  depar- 
ture from  its  primitive  purity.  *  *  In  closely  attending  to 
its  history,  we  observe  that  it  becomes  thenceforward  the 
history  of  men  rather  than  of  things  ;  the  body  of  the  church 
is  not  so  much  in  view,  but  the  acts  of  its  ministers  and 
teachers  are  continually  before  us." — Hist,  of  Chh.  pp. 
49,  50. 

We  have  now  arrived  at  what  Waddington  terms — "  Tlie 

Gibbon's  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  Vol.  1.  Chap. 
15.  p.  27G. 

*  I  would  not  be  understood  to  assert,  that  1  have  accurately 
pointed  out  all  the  steps  of  the  downward  course  of  the  churches 
from  their  original  order  and  institution — but  only  some  of  the 
more  prominent  and  probable. 


24  INTRODUCTION. 

Jirst  crisis  in  the  internal  history  of  the  Church."  It  was 
in  the  third  century  that  the  bishops  assumed  "  the  ensigns 
of  temporal  dignity,  the  splendid  throne,  the  sumptuous 
garments,  the  parade  of  external  pomp,"  and  the  tokens  of 
"  a  contentious  ambition."  It  was  in  this  century  that  the 
addition  of  the  "  minor  orders"  of  the  ministry — such  as 
sub-deacons,  acolythi,  readers,  exorcists,  etc. — gave  proof 
of  the  growing  pride  and  ambition,  as  well  as  indolence  of 
the  clergy.* 

All  these  things  indicate  the  corruption,  as  well  as  the 
extension,  of  Christianity.  Its  influence  was  indeed  per- 
ceptibly growing  in  the  empire,  though  exposed  to  occa- 
sional checks  from  popular  tumults  and  legalized  persecu- 
tion. Beyond  these  limits,  it  was  also  making  progress. 
And  this  brings  us  to  notice  another  and  most  powerful 
cause  of  the  corruption  of  the  churches. 

I  refer  to  the  admission  to  the  churches  of  inullitudes  loho 
were  destitute  of  piety. 

*  Mosheim,  Cent.  III.  F.  II.  Chap.  2.  Waddington,  Chap.  3. 
E,ver\  Milner — who  certainly  cannot  be  accused  of  uncharitablenesa 
towards  the  orthodox  and  established  church — gives  a  sombre  pic- 
ture of  the  state  of  religion  near  the  close  of  the  third  century. 
"  If,"  saj'S  he,  "  Christ's  kingdom  had  been  of  this  world  ;  and,  if 
its  strength  and  beauty  were  to  be  measured  by  secular  prosperity, 
we  should  here  fix  the  era  of  its  greatness.  But,  on  the  contrary, 
the  era  of  its  actual  declension  must  be  dated  in  the  pacific  part  of 
Diocletian's  reign. 

"  During  this  whole  century  the  work  of  God,  in  purity  and  pow- 
er, had  been  tending  to  decay  ;  the  connection  with  philosophers 
was  one  of  the  principal  causes ;  outward  peace  and  secular  advan- 
tages completed  the  corruption;  ecclesiastical  discipline,  which 
had  been  too  strict,  [?]  was  now  relaxed  exceedingly  ;  bishops  and 
people  were  in  a  state  of  malice  ;  endless  quarrels  were  fomented 
among  contending  parties  ;  and  ambition  and  covetousness,  had, 
in  general,  gained  the  ascendency  in  the  Christian  church." — Hist. 
ofChh.  Cent.  III.  Chap.  17. 


INTRODUCTION.  25 

When  the  ministers  of  the  churches  had  become  their 
governors,  and  the  ambitious  desire  of  enlarging  their  do- 
minions and  multiplying  their  subjects  had  induced  these 
governors  to  dispense  with  the  apostolic  prerequisites  for 
church  membership,  and  to  admit  whole  towns  and  cities, 
yea,  and  entire  nations  within  the  pale  of  the  Christian 
church,  upon  a  profession  of  their  wish  to  become  Chris- 
tians and  to  receive  baptism  ;* — when,  I  say,  these  things 
became  matters  of  history,  as  they  did  in  the  third  and 
fourth  centuries,  it  is  obvious  that  the  churches  could  no 
longer  be  little  sacred  republics.  It  was  no  longer  possible 
to  manage  ecclesiastical  matters  after  the  manner  of  the 
first  century.  The  world  had  now  overspread  the  church  ; 
and  the  church,  if  governed  at  all,  must  be  governed  by 
worldly  policy.  And  so  it  was,  from  about  the  close  of 
the  third  century  to  the  sixteenth. 

The  conversion  of  Constantino — Vv'hether  real  or  nominal, 
I  leave  others  to  decidet — was  followed,  as  a  matter  of 
course,  by  a  similar  conversion  of  the  court  and  the  em- 
pire itself.  But  the  cause  of  corruption,  of  which  I  am 
now  speaking,  developed  itself  most  fully  in  connection 
with  the  nominal  christianization  of  the  barbarians  who 
conquered  and  overran  the  Roman  Empire  in  the  fifth  and 
sixth  centuries.  For,  contrary  to  the  usual  course  of  events, 
these  conquerors  embraced  the  religion  of  the  conquered  ; 
and  entered  the  church  by  thousands — yea,  I  might  say,  by 
nations  !     The  same  is  substantially  true  of  the  admission 

*  See  Dr.  Owen — "  The  True  Nature  of  a  Gospel  Church,"  etc. 
Chap.  1.     Complete  Works,  Vol.  XX.  p.  363. 

t  The  reader  will  find  in  Gibbon  (Vol.  1.  Chaps.  IS  and  20)  all 

that  can  be  said,  or,  with  any  color  of  truth  insinuated,  against 

Constantino,  with  much  that  is  favorable  to  him.     Waddington 

takes  a  very  just  and  candid  view  of  the  Emperor,  Part  II.  Chap.  6. 

3 


26  INTRODUCTION. 

of  those  who  had  received  the  Christian  religion  from  the 
hands  of  missionaries,  previous  to  the  overthrow  of  the 
Empire.  These  semi-christianized  hordes,  coming  into  the 
church  with  httle  knowledge  of  the  principles  of  the  Chris- 
tian religion,  and  as  little  acquaintance  with  its  spirit,  would 
add  to  the  numbers  and  outward  glory  of  the  churches,  but 
not  to  their  real  strength. 

Most  pertinent  and  instructive  are  the  words  of  Dr.  Owen 
upon  this  subject  :  "  Herein,  I  say,  did  the  guides  of  the 
church  certainly  miss  their  rule,  and  depart  from  it,  in  the 
days  of  Constantino  the  emperor,  and  afterward  under 
other  Christian  emperors,  when  whole  towns,  cities,  yea, 
and  nations  offered  at  once  to  join  themselves  unto  it.  Evi- 
dent it  is,  that  they  were  not  wrought  hereunto  by  the  same 
power,  nor  induced  unto  it  by  the  same  motives,  or  led  by 
the  same  means  with  those  who  formerly  under  persecu- 
tions were  converted  unto  the  faith  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 
And  this  quickly  manifested  itself  in  the  lives  and  conver- 
sations of  many,  yea,  of  the  most  of  them.  Hence  those 
which  were  wise,  quickly  understood,  that  what  the  church 
had  got  in  multitude  and  number,  it  had  lost  in  the  beauty 
and  glory  of  its  holy  profession.  Chrysostom  in  particular 
complains  of  it  frequently,  and  in  many  places  cries  out. 
What  have  I  to  do  with  this  multitude,  a  few  serious  believ- 
ers are  worth  more  than  them  all.  However,  the  guides 
of  the  church  thought  meet  to  receive  them  with  all  their 
multitudes,  into  their  communion,  at  least  so  far  as  to  place 
them  under  the  jurisdiction  of  such  and  such  episcopal  sees  ; 
for  hereby  their  own  power,  authority,  dignity,  revenues, 
were  enlarged  and  mightily  increased.  On  this  occasion, 
the  ancient  primitive  way  of  admitting  members  into  the 
church  being  relinquished,  the  consideration  of  their  per- 
sonal qualifications,  and  real  conversion  to  God,  omitted, 


INTRODUCTION.  27 

such  multitudes  being  received  as  could  not  partake  in  all 
acts  and  duties  of  communion  with  those  particular  churches 
whereunto  they  were  disposed,  and  being  the  most  of  them 
unfit  to  be  ruled  by  the  power  and  influence  of  the  com« 
mands  of  Christ  on  their  minds  and  consciences,  it  was  im- 
possible but  that  a  great  alteration  must  ensue  in  the  state, 
order  and  rule  of  the  churches,  and  a  great  deviation  from 
their  original  institution."* 

Men,  converted  to  Christianity  because  it  was  the  reli- 
gion of  the  court ;  or  because,  pressed  by  their  enemies, 
they  hoped  to  find  in  Christ  a  more  powerful  god  than  those 
in  whom  they  had  before  trusted  ;  or,  because  their  pagan 
monarch,  driven  to  desperation  in  the  day  of  battle,  had 
vowed  to  be  a  Christian  if  he  might  but  conquer ;  or  for 
some  other  reason,  equally  remote  from  what  the  gospel 
requires — such  men,  it  is  evident,  could  know  little  of  the 
rights  of  churches,  and  they  would  care  as  little.t     They, 

*  '^  Inquiry  into  the  Original,  etc.  of  Evangelical  Churches," 
Preface — Complete  Works,  Vol.  XX.  p.  21. 

t  "  The  conversion  of  the  Burgundians,  early  in  the  fifth  centu- 
ry, is  thus  related,  with  no  improbability.  Harassed  bj'  the  con- 
tinual incursions  of  the  Huns,  and  incapable  of  self-defence,  they 
resolved  to  place  themselves  under  the  protection  of  some  God ; 
and  considering  that  the  God  of  the  Romans  most  powerfully  be- 
friended those  who  served  him,  they  determined,  on  public  delib- 
eration, to  believe  in  Jesus  Christ.  They  therefore  went  to  a  city 
in  Gaul,  and  entreated  the  bishop  to  baptize  them.  Immediately 
after  that  ceremony  they  gained  a  battle  against  their  enemies;  and 
if  (as  is  also  asserted)  they  afterwards  lived  in  peace  and  inno- 
cence, they  reaped,  in  that  respect,  at  least,  the  natural  fruits  of 
their  conversion." — Waddington,  Chap.  9.  p.  117,  note. 

"  In  tlie  year  493  Clovis  espoused  Clotilda,  niece  of  the  king  of 
the  Burgundians,  a  Christian  and  a  catholic.  He  tolerated  the 
religion  of  his  bride,  and  showed  respect  to  its  professors,  especial- 
ly to  St.  Remi,  archbishop  of  Rheimsj  but  he  steadily  refused  to 


28  INTRODUCTION. 

however,  within  a  (ew  centuries,  constituted  a  majority  of 
those  who  bore  the  Christian  name. 

More  than  this  :  such  masses  of  ignorance  could  not  be 
governed  by  the  rules  of  Chri&t's  church.  They  had  been 
accustomed  to  the  arbitrary  control  of  their  pagan  priests, 
and  they  desired  no  further  liberty  under  their  new  mas- 
ters ;  and  if  they  had  desired  it,  they  were  manifestly  un- 
qualified to  use  it. 

Thus  it  was,  that  one  error  led  into  another.  Thus  were 
the  lineaments  of  the  churches  of  Christ  effaced.  I  speak 
not  of  their  religious  faith.  There  was,  doubdess,  much  of 
doctrinal  truth  retained,  and  some  sincere  piety  amidst  all 

abandon  his  hereditary  idols  on  the  importunit}'  either  of  the  pre- 
late or  queen.  At  length  lie  found  himself  in  a  situation  of  dan- 
ger ;  in  tJie  heat  of  an  unsuccessful  battle,  while  his  Franks  wtre 
jQying  before  the  Alemanni.  Ciovis  is^  related  to  have  raised  his 
weeping  eyes  to  heaven,  and  exclaimed,  *  Jesus  Christ!  thoa 
whom  Clotilda  asserts  to  be  the  son  of  the  living  God,  I  implore 
thy  succor.  If  thou  wilt  give  me  the  victory,  I  will  believe  in 
thee,  and  be  baptized  in  thy  name.'  At  that  moment  the  king  of 
the  Alemanni  was  slain  ;  his  soldiers  knmediately  fled,  and  aban- 
doned the  field  to  Ciovis.  The  victor  was  not  unmindful  of  the 
God  of  his  adversity.  On  the  conclusion  of  his  expedition  he 
caused  himself  to  be  publicly  baptized  ;  about  three  thousand  of 
his  soldiers  attended  him  to  the  holy  font  with  joy  and  acclama- 
tion, and  the  rest  of  his  subjects  followed  without  any  hesitation 
the  faith  of  their  prince.  The  conversion  of  Ciovis  took  place  in 
496  ;  and  though  it  had  not  the  effect  of  amending  the  brutal  char- 
acter of  the  proselyte,  it  made  a  great  addition  to  the  physical 
strength  of  Christianity."— VVaddington,  Chap.  11.  p.  116. 

The  temper  of  this  convert,  after  his  professed  conversion,  is 
well  exhibited  by  the  following  anecdote,  related  in  Mosheim  (Vol. 
1.  p.  315,  note  10.  Harper's  Ed.)  :  ''  Ciovis  once  hearing  a  pathetic 
discourse  on  the  sufferings  of  Christ,  exclaimed  :  Si  ego  ibidem 
cum  Francis  meis  fuissem,  injurias  ejus  vindicassem.  Had  I  been 
there  with  my  Franks,  I  xcould  have  avenged  his  wrongs." 


INTRODUCTION.  29 

the  increasing  errors  of  the  first  seven  centuries;  yea, 
there  were  stars  shining  in  the  gatliering  darkness.  I  speak 
of  the  polity  of  the  churches.  This,  as  drawn  by  the  hand 
of  Christ  and  his  apostles,  was  gradually  defaced  and  de- 
formed ;  and  the  causes  which  wrought  this  deformity 
were,  in  part  at  least,  such  as  have  been  named. 

The  wealth  and  temporal  honors  conferred  upon  the 
clergy— the  gifts  of  princes  and  the  homage  of  converted 
nations  —  had  an  important  agency  in  corrupting  the 
churches. 

When  Christianity  became  the  adopted  child  of  the  Ro- 
man emperor,  it  was  natural  that  he  should  feel  a  pride  in 
honoring  and  elevating  her  in  the  eyes  of  the  world.  And, 
as  the  clergy  had  now  become  The  Church,*  the  most  ob- 
vious way  to  accomplish  the  desired  end  was  to  heap 
wealth  and  honors  and  privileges  upon  them.  This  accord- 
ingly was  done.  "  The  whole  body  of  the  Catholic  clergy," 
says  Gibbon,  "  more  numerous  perhaps  than  the  legions, 
was  exempted  by  the  emperors  from  all  service,  private  or 
public,  all  municipal  offices,  and  all  personal  taxes  and  con- 
tributions, which  pressed  on  their  fellow  citizens  with  in- 
tolerable weight.t  The  example  and  command  of  the  Em- 
peror Constantino  rendered  them  the  objects  of  private  be- 
nevolence and  public  benefactions.^ 

*  "  From  the  moment  that  the  interests  of  the  ministers  became 
at  all  distinguished  from  the  interests  of  the  religion,  the  corrup- 
tion of  Christianity  may  be  considered  to  have  begun." — Wad- 
dington,  p.  44,  Note. 

This  period  he  dates  towards  the  end  of  the  second  century. 

t  "  Dechne  and  Fall,"  Vol.  I.  Chap.  20.  p.  429. 

X  Gibbon  tells  us,  that  the  bishop  of  Carthage  was  at  one  time 
informed  by  a  messenger  from  Constantine,  "  That  the  treasurers 
of  the  province  are  directed  to  pay  into  his  hands  the  sum  of  three 

3* 


30  INTRODUCTION.- 

The  bishops  alone,  of  all  the  myriads  of  Roman  citizens, 
enjoyed  the  privilege  of  being  tried  by  their  peers  ;  and  the 
minor  orders  were  amenable  for  all  ordinary  civil  offences 
to  their  respective  bishops  ;  who,  from  the  time  of  Constan- 
tino, were  made  judges  of  civil  as  well  as  ecclesiastical 
causes,  in  their  respective  dioceses.  Hence  arose  the 
"  Bishop's  Court ;"  a  tribunal  which  so  many  of  the  fa- 
thers of  New  England  Congregationalism  had  cause  to 
remember. 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  remark,  that  the  truth  of  these 
representations  necessarily  implies  a  very  considerable 
change  in  the  order  and  discipline  of  the  churches — rather. 
of  The  Church,  as  the  "  established  "  religion  of  the  em- 
pire was  now  called. 

This  wealth,  and  these  honors,  immunities,  and  privi- 
leges bestowed  upon  the  clergy,  were  fuel  to  their  ambi- 
tion and  pride.  Instead  of  satisfying  their  rapacity,  they 
acted  as  incitements  to  intrigue  and  unhallowed  efforts  to 
increase  their  wealth  and  importance. 

We  have  yet,  however,  deeper  shades  to  throw  over  this 
dark  picture.     In  addition  to  all  that  the  Roman  emperors 

thousand  foil  es,  or  eighLeen  thousand  pounds  sterling,  and  to  obey 
his  further  requisitions  for  the  relief  of  the  churches  of  Africa,  Nu- 
midia,  and  Mauritania."  In  another  sentence  the  historian  in- 
forms us,  that  "■  An  annual  income  of  six  hundred  pounds  sterling 
may  be  reasonably  assigned  to  the  bishops,  who  were  placed  at  equal 
distance  between  riches  and  poverty,  but  the  standard  of  their 
wealth  insensibly  rose  with  the  dignity  and  opulence  of  the  cities 
which  they  governed." — Chap.  20.  p.  430. 

Mosheim  says,  that  •'  the  vices  and  faults  of  the  clergy,  espe-, 
cially  of  those  who  officiated  in  large  and  opulent  cities,  were 
augmented  in  proportion  to  the  increase  of  their  wealth,  honors, 
and  advantages,  derived  from  the  emperors  and  various  other  sour- 
ces ;  and  that  this  increase  was  very  great,  after  the  time  of  Con- 
Btantine,  is  acknowledged  by  all."— Cent.  IV.  P.  II.  Chap.  2.  §  8. 


INTRODUCTION.  31 

had  done  to  vitiate  the  order  of  the  churches,  by  pampering 
the  pride  and  feeding  the  ambition  of  the  clergy,  there  were 
elements  in  the  community  itself,  which  gave  peculiar  en- 
couragement to  clerical  usurpations. 

The  emperor's  partiality  for  the  church,  was,  with  the 
mass  of  his  subjects,  the  most  powerful  of  all  arguments  to 
profess  attachm.ent  to  the  new  religion.  If  we  may  credit 
the  testimony  of  Gibbon,  "  in  one  year  twelve  thousand 
men  were  baptized  at  Rome,  besides  a  proportionable 
number  of  women  and  children."*  The  example  and 
smiles  of  the  emperor  were  a  sufficient  inducement  for  all 
classes  in  society  to  think  favorably  of  Christianity — or,  at 
least,  io  prof  ess  this  opinion — wiihout  supposing  that  bribes 
were  actually  offered  to  all  who  would  become  converts.! 

Men  who  had  been  educated  amidst  the  sensuous  attrac- 
tiveness of  pagan  worship,  were  not  displeased  to  find  some- 
thing of  the  pageantry  of  Paganism  in  their  Christian  wor- 
ship. The  churches  were  encouraged  to  erect  sumptuous 
buildings  for  their  accommodation. 

The  costly  edifice  v/ith  its  beamsof  cedar  from  Libanus, 
and  its  roof  of  glittering  brass,  enriched,  perhaps,  with  gild- 
ing, and  its  walls,  and  columns,  and  pavement,  of  variegated 
marble,  was  an  object  well  suited  to  attract  thePagan  ,  and 
to  quiet  any  lingerings  of  regret  in  the  half-made  convert  to 
Christianity.  And  when  to  these  superb  fixtures  were  ad- 
ded the  splendid  ornaments  of  gold,  and  silver,  and  precious 
stones,  with  which  the  Christian  altars  were  made  to  glisten,}; 
the  most  fastidious,  and   sensual   heathen  could   scarcely 

*  Vol.  I.  Chap.  20.  p.  425. 

t  Gibbon  insinuates,  '<  that  a  white  garment,  with  twenty  pieces 
of  gold,  had  been  promised  by  the  emperor  to  every  convert."  In 
a  note,  he  has  the  candor  to  admit  that  the  "evidence  is  contempti- 
ble enough"  on  which  he  makes  the  insinuation. 

X  See  Gibbon's  description  of  these  matters. — Vol.  1.  Chap.  20. 


32  INTRODUCTION. 

look  with  lingering,  longing  eyes  upon  the  temples  of  the 
gods,  or  the  gorgeousness  of  their  worship.* 

*  Gibbon  gives  a  full  and  interesting  account  of  these  innova- 
tions, and,  as  I  suppose,  a  very  correct  one.  I  shall  be  excused,  I 
trust,  for  quoting  somewhat  fully  from  him. 

"  As  the  objects  of  religion  were  gradually  reduced  to  the  stand- 
ard of  the  imagination,  the  riLes  and  ceremonies  were  introduced 
that  seemed^  most  powerfully  to  aifect  the  senses  of  the  vulgar.  If, 
in  the  beginning'  of  the  fifth  century,  Tertullian,  or  Lactantius, 
had  been  suddenly  raised  from  the  dead,  to  assist  at  the  festival 
of  some  popular  saint,  or  martyr,  they  would  have  gazed  with  as- 
tonishment and, indignation,  on  the  profane  spectacle,  which  had 
succeeded  to  the  pure  and  spiritual  worship  of  a  Christian  congre- 
gation. As  soon  as  the  doors  of  the  church  were  thrown  open, 
they  must  have  been  offended  at  the  smoke  of  incense,  tlie  per- 
fume of  flowers,  atid  the  glare  of  lamps  and  tapers,  which  diffused, 
at  noon-day,  gaudy,  superfluous,  and,  in  their  opinion,  a  sacrile- 
gious light.  If  they  approached  the  balustrade  of  the  altar,  they 
made  their  way  through  the  prostrate  crowd,  consisting,  for  the 
most  part,  of  strangers  and  pilgrims,  who  resorted  to  the  city  on  the 
vigil  of  the  feast ;  and  who  already  felt  the  strong  intoxication  of 
fanaticism,  and  perhaps,  of  wine.  Their  devout  kisses  were  im- 
printed on  the  walls  and  pavement  of  the  sacred  edifice  ;  and  their 
fervent  prayers  were  directed,  whatever  might  be  the  language  of 
their  church,  to  the  bones,  the  blood,  or  the  ashes  of  the  saints, 
which  were  usually  concealed,  by  a  iinen'or  silken  veil,  from  the 
eyes  of  the  vulgar."  *  *  *  *  "  The  walls  were  hung  round  with 
symbols  of  the  favors  which  they  had  received  ;  eyes,  and  hands, 
and  feet,  of  gold  and  silver;  and  edifying  pictures,  which  could 
not  long  escape  the  abuse  of  indiscreet  or  idolatrous  devotion,  re- 
presented the  image,  the  attributes,  and  the  miracles  of  the  tutelar 
saint.  The  same  uniform  original  spirit  of  superstition  might  sug- 
gest, in  the  most  distant  ages  and  countries,  the  same  method  of 
deceiving  the  credulity,  and  of  affecting  the  senses,  of  mankind  ; 
but  it  must  ingenuously  be  confessed,  that  the  ministers  of  the 
^Catholic  church  imitated  the  profane  model,  which  they  were  im- 
patient to  destroy.  The  most  respectable  bishops  had  persuaded 
themselves,  that  the  ignorant  rustics   v/ould   more  cheerfully  re- 


INTRODUCTION.  33 

It  was,  unquestionably,  to  meet  the  tastes  of  Pagans, — on 
the  plea  of  winning  them  over  to  Christianity, — that  the 
rulers  of  the  church  introduced  many  of  the  ornaments,  and 
elegances,  and  extravagances,  with  which,  from  the  days 
of  Constantino,  the  beautiful  simplicity  of  apostolic  worship 
was  deformed  ;  not  perceiving,  that  they  were  gradually  Pa- 
ganizing the  Church,  rather  than  Christianizing  the  Pagans.* 

To  what  has  been  said  of  the  corrupting  influences  which 
wrought  within  the  boundaries  of  civilized  Rome,  must  be 
added  other  influences,  which  came  from  the  Barbarian 
nations  who  either  received  the  gospel  from  the  hands  of 
the  missionary,  or,  after  the  overthrow  of  the  empire,  were 
converted  to  a  profession  of  Christianity  with  the  expecta- 
tion of  finding  it  a  more  profitable  system  of  religion  than 
that  in  which  they  had  been  educated. 

Some  of  these  barbarous  nations  who  had  been  accus- 
tomed to  venerate,  and  all  but  deify  their  priests,  and  to  al- 
low them  great  secular  influence,  very  naturally  transferred 
much  of  this  veneration  to  their  Christian  teachers  ;  and  it 
would  be  strange  if  this  were  not  heightened  by  their  con- 
viction of  the  superior  power  and  glory  of  the  new  God  to 
whom  they  had  now   devoted   themselves,  and   whose  ser- 

nounce  the  superstitions  of  paganism,  if  they  found  some  resem- 
blance, some  compensation,  in  the  bosom  of  Christianity.  The 
religion  of  Constantine  achieved,  in  less  than  a  century,  the  final 
conquest  of  the  Roman  empire  ;  but  the  victors  themselves  were 
insensibly  subdued  bj^  the  arts  of  their  vanquished  rivals." — Gib- 
bon, Vol.  II.  Chap.  2S.  p.  198.  Harper's  Ed. 

*  Does  not  the  history  of  this  experiment  furnish  overwhelming 
evidence  of  the  soundness  of  the  first  principles  of  Congregation- 
alism ;  and  the  danger  of  all  attempts  to  accommodate  the  order, 
discipline,  and  worship  of  the  church,  to  any  particular  form  of 
civil  government,  or  to  the  tastes  and  peculiarities  of  the  commu- 
nity in  which  it  exists  .' 


34  INTRODUCTION. 

vants  these  ministers  were.  Credulous  and  superstitious, 
as  barbarians  usually  arti,  accustomed  to  believe  implicitly, 
and  to  obey  unhesitatingly,  their  religious  guides,  in  relig- 
ious matters,  they  would  expect,  and  all  but  demand  the 
same  sort  of  slavery  under  their  new  priests.  In  such  cir- 
cumstances it  would  not  require  a  stronger  plea  to  justify 
the  introduction  of  arbitrary  government  into  the  churches, 
than  had  sanctioned  idolatrous  rites  in  their  worship. 

Again  ;  the  rich  among  these  heathen  converts,  accus- 
tomed to  bestow  their  wealth  upon  their  pagan  priests  and 
altars,  very  naturally  inferred,  that  similar  gifts  would  be 
equally  acceptable  to  their  new  teachers,  and  no  less  suita- 
ble to  their  new  altars.  It  is  needless  to  add,  that  these 
gifts  were  not  refused.  Thus  the  clergy  and  their  churches 
were  greatly  enriched. 

These  things  were  abundantly  sufficient  to  corrupt  both 
priests  and  people,  and  materially  to  affect  the  apostolic 
and  simple  order  of  the  churches.  But  these  causes  were 
not  alone. 

In  the  eighth  century  there  began  to  prevail  throughout 
the  w^estern  Roman  empire,  a  belief — encouraged,  doubt- 
less, if  not  originally  suggested  by  the  clergy— that  the  gift 
of  property  to  churches  was  a  certain  passport  to  the  divine 
favor  ;  and  that  wealth  thus  bestowed,  might  be  lawfully  sub- 
stituted for  the  severe  penances  which  had  previously  been 
inflicted  upon  religious  offenders.  These  doctrines,  so  accep- 
table to  the  natural  heart,  were  eagerly  caught  at  by  the  weal- 
thy and  the  wicked  ;  and  they  readily  poured  out  their  treas- 
ures at  the  feet  of  the  clergy,  in  order  to  purchase  the  favor 
of  God,  or  to  obtain  exemption  from  severe  bodily  penance 
for  overt  acts  of  transgression.  Others  left  their  estates  as 
legacies  to  the  churches,  to  purchase  peace  of  conscience 
upon  the  bed  of  death,  and  to  secure  an  entrance  to  the 
rest  of  heaven. 


INTRODUCTION  35 

By  such  means,  the  bishops  and  their  churches  became 
immensely  rich  ;  and  of  necessity,  corrupt. 

"  The  gifts,  moreover,"  says  Mosheim,  "  by  which  the 
princes  especially  and  the  noblemen,  endeavored  to  satisfy 
the  priests  and  to  expiate  their  past  sins,  were  not  merely 
private  possessions  which  common  citizens  might  own,  and 
with  which  the  churches  and  monasteries  had  often  before 
been  endowed  ;  but  they  were  also  2)uhlic  property,  or  such 
as  may  properly  belong  only  to  princes  and  nations,  royal 
domains  {regalia)  as  they  are  called.  For  the  emperors, 
kings  and  princes,  transferred  to  bishops,  to  churches,  and 
to  monasteries,  whole  provinces,  cities,  and  castles,  with  all 
the  rights  of  sovereignty  over  them.  Thus  the  persons, 
whose  business  it  was  to  teach  contempt  for  the  world  both 
by  precept  and  example,  unexpectedly  became  dukes, 
counts,  marquises,  judges,  legislators,  sovereign  lords ;  an(J 
they  not  only  administered  justice  to  citizens,  but  even 
marched  out  to  war,  at  the  head  of  their  own  armies.  And 
this  was  the  origin  of  those  great  calamities  which  after- 
wards afflicted  Europe,  the  lamentable  wars  and  contests 
about  invesiures  and  the  regalia.''''^ 

It  cannot  be  supposed,  that  under  such  circumstances,  the 
established  and  pampered  church,  and  stall-fed  clergy 
would  exhibit  much  of  the  apostolic  character  of  the 
first  ages. 

Having  dwelt  with  some  degree  of  particularity  on  the 
prominent  causes  of  the  early  corruption  of  the  churches, 
it  may  be  proper  to  say  distinctly,  what  I  have  already  re- 
peatedly intimated — that,  though,  in  the  order  and  govern- 
ment and  worship  of  the  churches,  great  and  gross  corrup- 
tions had  been  introduced  during  the  first  seven  centuries 
of  Christian  history — yet  it   must  not  be  presumed  that  in 

*  Vol.  I.  B.  III.  Cent.  Vlll.  T.  II.  Chap.  2. 


36  INTRODUCTION. 

religious  doctrine  the  church  was  utterly  unsound  and  cor- 
rupt.  The  truth  was  far  otherwise.  The  essential  doc- 
Irines  of  the  gospel  were  generally  retained  by  the  ortho- 
dox part  of  the  church,  during  the  whole  period  which  has 
passed  under  review.  There  were  errors  and  heresies 
enough  abroad  in  the  world,  and  among  professed  Chris- 
tians,— as  the  reader  of  any  ecclesiastical  history,  particu- 
larly Mosheim,  will  have  occasion  to  know — yet,  the  essen- 
tial truths  of  religion  were  so  extensively  received,  that  we 
have  reason  to  believe  there  were  multitudes  of  truly  pious 
persons  within  the  pale  of  the  Church,  during  even  the 
darkest  period  of  the  seven  hundred  years  of  which  we 
have  been  speaking.  We  have  been  occupied  in  tracing 
the  footsteps  of  error,  and  declension,  and  corruption,  in 
the  order  of  the  churches,  and  not  the  more  pleasant  marks 
of  sincere  piety  in  their  members.* 

Further,  it  must  be  borne  in  mind,  that  we  have  had  the 
rulers  and  the  great  men  of  the  church  chiefly  before  us. 
These,  to  be  sure,  were  the  men  who  gave  direction  to  the 
outward  form  and  character  of  the  institution  ;  but  these 
were  the  men  most  likely  to  feel  the  influence  of  pride  and 
ambition.  To  the  humbler  ministers — the  presbyters  and 
deacons  of  the  church,  and  to  individuals  among  the  laity — 
we  must  look  for  the  clearest  evidences  of  Christ's  spirit. 
But  these,  for  the  most  part,  are  unknown  in  ecclesiastical 
history. 

We  have  now  very  cursorily  surveyed  some  of  the  more 
prominent  steps  of  the  "  Mystery  of  Iniquity,"  so  far  as  its 

*  He  who  would  see  the  most  favorable  accounts  of  the  orthodox 
churchmen  of  all  ages,  must  consult  "  Milner's  History  of  the 
Church  ;"  a  very  evangelical  work,  but,  in  my  humble  judgment, 
much  too  highly  rated,  and  often  very  deficient  in  candor,  or  judg- 
ment, when  dissenters  of  any  description  are  the  subject  matter 
of  his  history. 


INTRODUCTION.  37 

traces  on  the  order  and  discipline  of  the  churches  of  Christ 
are  visible.  These  were  the  stepping-stones  on  which  the 
"  Man  of  Sin,"  after  a  fierce  contest  with  his  ambitious  ri- 
vals, mounted  to  the  throne  of  universal  empire.  And, 
supported  by  the  despotic  civil  power — the  "  beast  of  seven 
heads  and  ten  horns"* — consummated  the  work  of  corrup- 
tion in  the  general  order  of  Christ'^s  house.f 

From  the  establishment  of  the  temporal  power  of  the 
Roman  Pontiff —  about  A.  D.  755  —  to  the  period  of  the 
Luthern  Reformation  in  the  sixteenth  century,  the  Romish 
hierarchy  grew  more  and  more  corrupt  in  its  discipline 
and  general  character,  until  the  world  could  no  longer  bear 
the  grossness  of  its  immoralities  and  the  corruptions  of  its 
government.     The  eyes  of  men  were  at  length  opened ; 

*  See  Revelation  xvii,  and  2  Tliess.  ii. 

t  The  bishop  of  Rome,  favored  by  his  situation  in  the  ancient 
capital  of  the  empire,  and  the  friendship  of  Pepin,  the  powerful 
French  monarch,  who  made  him  exarch  of  Ravenna — a  possession 
which  was  afterwards  confirmed  and  enlarged  by  Charlemagne, 
in  consideration  of  the  bishop's  services  in  procuring  Charles  the 
title  of  emperor  of  the  West, — outwent  all  his  competitors,  "re- 
mained master  of  the  field,  and  became  Sovereign  PoNxiry  ; 
"  thereby  obtaining,"  as  Dr.  Owen  says,"  a  second  conquest  of  the 
world."  Owen's  "  Inquiry  into  the  Original,  etc.  of  Evangelical 
Churches,"  Preface,  presents  a  learned  and  condensed  view  of  the 
declension  of  the  churches  from  the  apostolic  order.  The  entire 
work  is  one  of  great  value  to  the  student  of  this  subject. 

The  exarchate  of  Ravenna,  included  the  territories  of  Ptavenna, 
Bologna  and  Ferrara,  and  embraced  very  nearly  the  same  extent 
of  country  as  is  now  called  "  The  Roman  States,"  or  "  The  States 
of  the  Church."  It  covered  something  less  than  one  third  part  of 
Italy. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  the  temporal  power  conferred  on  the 
Roman   pontiff  by   Pepin  and   confirmed   by  Charlemagne,  "  has 
never  since  been  either  greatly  increased  or  greatly  diminished." 
— See  Waddington's  Hist,  of  the  Church    Harper's  Ed.  p.  149. 
4 


SS  INTRODT/CTION. 

and  they  beheld  a  woman  sitting  upon  "  a  scarlet  colored 
beast,  full  of  names  of  blasphemy,  having  seven  heads 
and  ten  horns.  And  the  woman  was  arrayed  in  purple 
and  scarlet  color,  and  decked  with  gold  and  precious 
stones  and  pearls,  having  a  golden  cup  in  her  hand  full  of 
abominations  and  filthiness  of  her  fornications.  And  up- 
on her  forehead  a  name  was  written  Mystery,  Babylon  the 
Great,  the  Mother  of  Hai^lots  and  Abominations  of  the 
Earth.'''' — Rev.  xvii. 

Nations,  which  had  been  made  drunk  with  "  the  wine  of 
the  wrath  of  her  fornication,"  awoke  from  the  effects  of 
her  enchantments ;  and  they  wondered  while  they  beheld 
the  exact  resemblance  which  the  woman  upon  the  scarlet 
colored  beast  bore  to  their  own  mother  church ;  and  their 
hearts  were  turned  to  hate  her. 

The  translation  of  the  Bible  into  the  languages  of  Eu- 
rope, and  the  circulation  of  it  among  the  common  people, 
were  important  means  in  promoting  the  Reformation.  The 
Scriptures,  while  they  exposed  the  doctrinal  errors,  and 
the  gross  immoralities  of  popery,  revealed  also  the  primi- 
tive model  of  a  Christian  church.  The  full  discovery  of 
this  by  the  English  Puritans  was  the  result  of  their  strict 
adherence  to  the  grand  principle  of  the  Reformation  :  That 
the  Scriptures  are  a  sufficient,  and  the  only  infallible  guide 
to  religious  faith  and  practice.  A  rejection  of  this  princi- 
ple, in  its  application  to  church  order,  has  entailed  national 
ecclesiastical  establishments  upon  many  Protestant  coun- 
tries ;  and  has  marred  the  beauty  and  excellence  of  various 
systems  of  church  government,  the  framers  of  which  have 
adopted  the  principle— that  "  Jesus  Christ  has  not  himself 
left  any  directions  for  governing  the  church."* 

*  I  quote  the  language  of  Dr.  Burton,  Prof,  of  Divinity  in  Ox- 
ford, Eng.  as  given  in  the  Oct.  No.  of  Am.  Bib.  Rep.     This  senti- 


/ 

INTRODUCTION.  39 

Though  the  principle,  that  the  Scriptures  are  a  sufficient 
guide  to  the  order^  as  well  as  the  faith  of  the  church,  was 
early  lost  by  the  Christian  world  at  large,  and  has  not  yet 
become  generally  recognized — still,  there  have  never  been 
wanting,  even  in  the  darkest  ages,  some  witnesses  to  this 
truth.  From  very  early  antiquity  we  are  able  to  trace  the 
footsteps  of  sects  or  denominations  of  professed  Christians 
who,  by  the  adoption  of  this  principle  or  for  some  other 
reason,  liave  been  led  to  embrace  and  maintain  some  of  the 
distinctive  principles  or  distinguishing  doctrines  of  Congre- 
gationalism. 

In  the  following  pages  I  propose  to  enumerate  these  dif- 
ferent sects,  and  to  present  a  summary  of  their  history. 
And  it  may  be  well  at  the  outset,  to  apprize  the  reader,  that 
he  must  be  prepared  to  find  these  dissenters  from  "  The 
Church''''  classed  among  heretics  and  schismatics  ;  and  often 
loaded  with  reproaches.  He  need  not  be  surprised  if  he 
sometimes  finds  them  really  defective  in  some  important 
particulars,  and  not  even  deserving  so  good  a  name  as  could 
be  wished.  But,  when  it  is  remembered  that,  for  most  that 
we  know  of  the  dissenters  of  early  ages,  we  are  indebted 
to  the  writings  of  their  enemies,  we  shall  be  prepared  to  re- 
ceive ill  reports  with  caution,  while  we  estimate  more  high- 
ly the  good  that  may  be  said  of  them. 

But  whether  those  of  whom  I  shall  write  deserve  an  evil 
or  good  report,  it  is  manifestly  the  duty  of  one  who  attempts 
to  give  the  history  of  Congregationalism,  to  mention  all 
those  sects,  who,  previous  to  the  full  development  of  the 
Congregational  system,  embraced  any  of  its  distinguishing 
features  ;  however  unlike,  in  other  respects,  they  may  have 
been  to  modern  Concrregationalists. 

ment  is  adopted   and  commended  by  the  editors,  who  are  Presby- 
terians. 


40  INTRODUCTION. 

I  have  surveyed  the  field  of  my  labors  sufficiently  to  be 
aware  of  the  difficulties  of  ray  undertaking.  I  have  not 
the  vanity  to  expect  to  write  a  history  which  will  be  alto- 
gether acceptable  to  the  friends  of  this  denomination,  or 
satisfactory  to  myself.  But,  in  the  absence  of  «???/ history 
of  Congregationalism,  I  hope  that,  my  humble  labors  may 
serve,  at  least,  as  "  stepping  stones"  to  a  more  competent 
historian. 


HISTORY   OF 
CONGREGATIONALISM 


CHAPTER  I. 

ORIGIN  AND  HISTORY  OF  THE  NOVATIANS,  A.  D.  251. 

The  Novatians  were  probably  the  first  organized  body 
of  dissenters  from  the  Catholic  church.  Certainly  the  first 
that  attracted  much  attention.  There  may  have  been  in- 
dividuals who  dissented  from  the  impurities  of  the  church 
at  an  earlier  period  ;  and  isolated  churches,  which  stood 
aloof  from  the  Catholic*  party  :  but,  no  very  general 
protest  was  entered  against  the  growing  impurities  in 
church  order,  until  the  Novatians  appeared  about  the  mid- 
dle of  the  third  century. 

And  even  these  church  reformers  seem  not  to  have  pro- 
tested against  all  the  incipient  corruptions  which  began  to 
show  themselves  in  their  day.  Their  attention  was  direct- 
ed, at  first,  at  least,  chiefly  to  a  great  principle  relating  to 
church  order — the  character  of  those  who  should  be  mem- 
bers of  the  churches  of  Christ. 

The  cursory  view  which  has  been  given  of  the  progress 
of  church  corruption  will  show,  that  the  positive  encroach- 
ments of  the  bishops  upon  the  rights  of  the  presbyters  and 

*  I  use  the  term  Catholic,   in   its  original  sense,  as  synonymous 
with  general,  to  designate  the  dominant  party. 
4* 


42  HISTORY  or  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

their  lay  brethren  began  in  this  century.  And,  to  give 
plausibility  to  their  encroachments,  some  new  doctrines 
respecting  the  church  and  the  episcopal  office  were  cau- 
tiously advanced.  But  they  were  so  covertly  and  obscurely 
brought  forward,  that  they  attracted  but  little  attention  ; 
and  consequently,  occasioned  little  or  no  alarm.* 

It  was  towards  the  middle  of  this  century  that  Cyprian, 
the  renowned  bishop  of  Carthage,  began  to  advocate  the 
doctrine,  that  bishops  were  "the  successors  of  the  apostles  ;" 
and  to  draw  a  line  of  distinction  between  bishops  and  pres- 
byters ;  and  also,  to  advance  some  notions,  which  have 
been  understood  to  countenance  a  sort  of  supremacy  in  the 
bishop  of  Rome.t  But  while  he  claimed  for  bishops  a  cer- 
tain superiority  in  rank  over  presbyters,  "  yet,  when  urged 
by  necessity,  he  could  give  up  his  pretensions,  and  submit 
everything  to  the  judgment  and  authority  of  the  church."| 
And,  while  he  intimated  that  the  bishop  of  Rome,  as  the 
successor  of  Peter,  held  a  sort  of  supremacy  (primatum)  in 
the  church,  he  maintained  that  there  should  be  nothing  in- 
solent or  arrogant  (aliquid  insolenter,  aut  arroganter)  in 
the  assumption  or  exercise  of  this  supremacy. 

Hence  we  may  infer,  that  although  there  were  manifest 
deviations  from  the  scriptural  doctrine  of  the  equality  of  all 

*  See  Mosheim,  Book  1.  Cent.  III.  Part  II.  Chap.  2. 

t  See  notes  on  the  passage  just  referred   to,  In  Mosheim's  Ecc. 

History. 

t  Mor;heim.     See  also  Milner,  particularly  Cent.  Ul.  Chap.  9. 

In  one  of  his  letters  to  his  presbyters,  written  during  his  retire- 
ment from  the  violence  of  the  Decian  persecution,  Cyprian  says  : 
"  To  tlie  point  concerning  which  certain  presbyters  wrote  to  me, 
I  can  answer  nothing  alone  ;  for,  from  the  beginning  of  my  appoint- 
ment to  this  see,  I  determined  to  do  no  thing  tcithout  your  consent 
and  the  consent  of  the  people.  But  when  by  the  favor  of  God  I  shall 
have  returned  to  you,  ice  will  treat  in  common  of  all  things." 


NOVATIANS.  43 

bishops  and  presbyters,  in  the  churches  of  the  third  centu- 
ry, yet  there  was  not  that  avowed  rejection  of  the  apostohc 
model  at  the  time  the  Novatians  appeared,  which  would 
have  justified  any  organized  opposition  to  the  usurpations  of 
the  clergy.  Such  opposition  could  not  be  expected  until 
there  were  settled  and  avowed  principles  or  doctrines  to  be 
opposed.  But  even  Cyprian,  at  times  the  most  strenuous 
and  arrogant  defender  of  episcopal  power,  was  far  from 
being  fixed  and  uniform  in  his  ecclesiastical  principles  and 
practice,  "  No  man,"  says  Schlegel,  "  can  speak  in  higher 
terms  of  the  power  of  the  bishops,  than  the  arrogant  Cyp- 
rian— that  very  Cyprian,  who,  when  not  fired  by  any  pas- 
sion, is  so  condescending  towards  presbyters,  deacons,  and 
the  common  people." 

The  historians  of  the  church  represent  the  usurpations 
of  the  clergy  up  to  this  time,  and  beyond  it  even,  as  of  a 
gradual  and  insensible  character.  They  were  an  unobser- 
ved, yet  powerful  under-current,  which,  while  presenting 
scarcely  a  ripple  on  the  surface,  v/as  yet  rapidly  bearing 
towards  the  vortex  most  of  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the 
churches.  Or,  like  the  way  of  a  ship  when  leaving  port, 
whose  progress  is  discoverable  rather  by  a  view  of  what 
it  has  left,  than  by  any  apparent  movement.* 

These  remarks  may  possibly  be  regarded  as  irrelevant  to 
the  subject  under  consideration — the  dissent  of  the  Nova- 
tians ;  but  a  moment's  reflection  may  show  that  they  are 
called  for,  to  account  for  the  fact,  that  the  earliest  dissen- 
ters from  the  Catholic  church  on  the  score  of  church  order, 
presented  no  remonstrance  against  the  usurpations  of  the 
clergy  over  the  rights  of  the  churches. 

But,  to  return  from  this  apparent  digression,  to  the  cir- 
cumstances attending  the  origin  of  the  Novatians.     During 

*  See  Pref.  to  Dr.  Owen's  XXth  Vol.     Complete  Works. 


44  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

more  than  thirty  years  of  the  first  half  of  the  third  century 
— commencing  A.  D.  211  and  extending  towards  A.  D. 
249 — the  churches  were  exempt  from  general  persecution  ;* 
and  enjoyed,  for  the  most  part,  the  protection  and  some- 
times the  favor  of  the  Roman  emperors.  Christians  found 
their  way  into  places  of  trust  and  importance,  in  the  army, 
in  the  court,  and  even  in  the  palace.  They  dared  openly 
to  transact  their  church  business ;  and  were  allowed  to 
purchase  land,  and  to  erect  places  for  public  worship  within 
the  imperial  city  itself. 

This  season  of  rest  was  one  of  outward  prosperity,  but 
of  inward  corruption. f 

From  this  state  of  repose  and  corruption,  the  churches 
were  suddenly  aroused  by  the  accession,  to  the  imperial 
throne,  of  Decius,  A.  D.  249.     This  emperor  began  the 

*  Tiie  bishops  and  ministers  of  the  churches  were,  for  a  short 
time,  exposed  to  persecution,  by  the  edict  of  the  emperor  Maxi- 
niin,  A.  D.  VJ35 — ^37,  v.'hile  the  body  of  the  churches  were  ex- 
empted. The  laity  were,  however,  constantly  liable  to  the  law- 
less attacks  of  the  populace,  excited  by  the  pagan  priests. — See 
Mosheira,  Cent,  IJI.  P.  II.  Chap.  11. 

Gibbon,  who  seems  disposed  to  make  as  light  of  the  persecutions 
of  the  Christians  by  the  pagans,  as  possible,  represents  the  Chris- 
tians as  enjoying  •'  a  calm  of  thirty-eight  years  ;'"  i.  e.  from  A.  D, 
211  to  249.  He  speaks  of  the  sufferings  of  the  Christians  under 
Maximin,  as  improperly  called  a  persecution,  and  as  ''  of  a  very  lo- 
cal and  temporary  nature." — Vol.1.  Chap.  IG. 

t  A  vivid  picture  of  the  corrupt  state  of  the  church  is  given  by 
Cyprian  in  his  treatise  concerning  the  lapsed.— See  Milner's  Hist, 
of  the  Chh.  Cent.  IH.  Chap.  8.  Milner  says  :  "  The  peace  of  thir- 
ty years  had  corrupted  the  whole  Christian  atmosphere.— Chap. 
11.  Taylor,  in  his  "Ancient  Christianitij"  presents  us  with  a 
most  loathsome  exhibition  of  the  corruptions  of  this  age — particu- 
larly of '<  the  zealous  and  upright  Cyprian's"  *'  delinquent  steic  of 
ecclesiastical  xirginity,  at  Carthage." — First  Proposition. 


NOVATIANS.  45 

most  terrible  and  extensive  persecution  which  the  Church 
of  Christ  has  ever  experienced.  It  extended  to  all  parts  of 
the  empire,  and  involved  all  classes  of  Christians,  exposing 
them  to  every  species  of  suffering.  "  Immense  numbers," 
says  Mosheim,  "  dismayed,  not  so  much  by  the  fear  of 
death,  as  by  the  dread  of  the  long  continued  tortures,  by 
which  the  magistrates  endeavored  to  overcome  the  constan- 
cy of  Christians,  professed  to  renounce  Christ ;  and  procu- 
red for  themselves  safety,  either  by  sacrificing,  i.  e.  offer- 
ing incense  before  the  idols,  or  by  certificates  purchased 
with  money."*  God  in  mercy  to  his  Church,  cut  short  the 
career  of  this  monster.t  He  reigned  something  less  than 
three  years. 

On  the  return  of  peace,  the  lapsed  and  apostate  Chris- 
tians were  found  at  the  doors  of  the  churches,  seeking  ad- 
mission. And  so  numerous  were  they,  that  they  were 
emboldened  to  demand  admission  to  church  privileges 
without  undergoing  the  severe  penance  usually  insisted 
upon  in  such  cases.  Many  of  the  bishops  and  other 
clergy  were  for  admitting  the  lapsed  on  their  own  terms ; 
some,  however,  were  of  a  different  mind.  Among  the 
latter  was  Novatian,  a  presbyter  of  the  church  of  Rome. 
A  man  of  extensive  learning,  unblemished  morals,  and 
devoted  piety.  He  had  witnessed  with  disgust  the  time- 
serving and  unscriptural  management  of  the   bishops  and 

*  The  reader  may  find  a  full  and  interesting  account  of  this  per- 
secution, in  Milner's  Hist,  of  the  Chh.  Cent.  III.  Chaps.  8 — 11. 

t  Gibbon  says,  so  oppressive  to  the  Christians  was  the  govern- 
ment of  Decius,  '^  that  their  former  condition,  ever  since  the  time 
of  Domitian  [A.  D  06],  was  represented  as  a  state  of  perfect  free- 
dom and  security,  if  compared  with  the  rigorous  treatment  which 
they  experienced  under  the  short  reign  of  Decius."  Lactantius 
calls  him,  '<  execrable  animal,.'' — See  Gibbon,  Vol.  1.  Chap.  16.  § 


46  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

their  churches,  in  admitting  unworthy  members  to  their 
communion  ;  and  even  restoring  them  to  Christian  fel- 
lowship after  they  had  once  apostatized  from  the  faith. 
By  a  view  of  the  evils  attending  this  course,  he  was  at 
length  brought  to  take  the  high  ground — That  the  church 
should  consist  of  none  but  the  pure  in  heart  and  the  blame- 
less in  life  ;  and  to  maintain,  that  if  any  one  in  time  of  per- 
secution fell  away  from  his  Christian  steadfastness,  he 
should  be  utterly  repudiated  by  the  church,  and  on  no  con- 
dition re-admitted  to  her  fellowship.  He  did  not  deny  the 
lapsed  the  hope  of  final  salvation, — he  even  urged  them  to 
repentance,  that  they  might  be  saved  ;  but  he  denied  them 
re-admission  to  the  bosom  of  the  Christian  church  ;  main- 
taining, that  "  the  church  should  be  a  society  of  innocent 
persons,  who,  from  their  entrance  into  it,  had  defiled  them- 
selves with  no  sin  of  any  considerable  magnitude." 

Now,  whether  or  not  we  can  fully  justify  the  ground  ta- 
ken by  Novatian,  we  certainly  must  admit,  that  the  oscilla- 
ting course  of  multitudes  who  professed  the  Christian  name 
in  those  days — now  worshipping  "  Christ  as  God,"  in  Chris- 
tian congregations,  and  now,  sacrificing,  before  the  altars 
of  Paganism,  to  the  gods  of  the  heathen,  and  denying  the 
Lord  that  bought  them  ;  and  anon  returning  to  their  pro- 
fession of  Christianity — we  must,  I  say,  admit  that  such 
conduct  was  anything  but  reputable,  or  commendatory  to 
the  cause  of  Christ.  And  before  we  condemn  the  doctrine 
of  Novatian,  we  must  place  ourselves  fully  in  his  circum- 
stances, and  consider  the  vast  importance  of  the  principle 
for  which  he  contended. 

The  principle  on  which  he  denied  admission  to  the 
church  of  Christ  to  all  but  the  pure  in  heart  and  the  blame- 
less in  life,  is,  beyond  question,  the  same  on  which  the 
apostolic  churches  were  originally  gathered.     This  too,  is 


NOVATIANS.  47 

one  of  the  fundamental  principles  of  the  Congregational 
system.  Indeed,  it  lies  at  the  very  foundation  of  the  whole 
system.  It  is  hopeless  to  think  of  maintaining  the  Con- 
gregational polity  where  this  principle  is  disregarded. 

The  talents  and  piety  of  Novatian,  and  the  arguments 
which  he  drew  from  the  Scriptures  and  the  character  of 
the  apostolic  churches,  soon  gathered  around  him  many 
friends  and  followers. 

In  the  year  A.  D.  251  Novatian  and  his  followers  sepa- 
rated themselves  from  the  church  of  Rome  ;  and  indeed, 
from  the  entire  Catholic  community  :  "  not  for  a  reason  of 
faith" — for  they  agreed  in  doctrinal  belief  with  the  great 
body  of  the  church — but  on  the  ground,  that  the  Catholic 
church  had  corrupted  herself  by  the  admission  of  unworthy 
members,  and  was  no  longer  a  body  of"  innocent  persons  ;" 
and  that  her  congregations  were  no  longer  entitled  to  the 
name  of  Christian  churches. 

So  agreeable  to  the  convictions  of  multitudes  were  these 
doctrines  of  Novatian,  that,  besides  the  church  which  was 
organized  by  him  in  Rome,  another  sprang  up  in  Carthage, 
by  the  side  of  the  "  arrogant  Cyprian  ;"  and  within  the 
third  century  the  schism  had  spread  into  Gaul.  And  there 
were  churches  in  Nice,  Nicomedia,  in  Phrygia,  in  Constan- 
tinople, and  probably,  in  numerous  other  places,  all  over 
the  empire,  before  the  close  of  the  fourth  century. 

"The  vast  extent  of  this  sect,"  says  Dr.  Lardner,  "  is 
manifest  from  the  names  of  the  authors  who  have  mention- 
ed them,  or  written  against  them,  and  from  the  several 
parts  of  the  Roman  empire  in  which  they  were  found."* 

Robinson,  in  his  Ecclesiastical  Researches,  speaking  of 
the  abuse  of  Novatian  by  the  Catholic  writers  of  his  day, 

*  Quoted  by  Mr.  Jones— Hist,  of  the  Chris.  Chh.  Vol.  1.  p.  318. 
Kng.  Ed. 


48  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

says :  "  They  call  Novatian  the  author  of  the  heresy  of 
Puritanism  ;  and  yet  they  know  that  Tertullian  had  quitted 
the  church  near  fifty  years  before,  for  the  same  reason  ; 
and  Privatus,*  who  was  an  old  man  in  the  time  of  Nova- 
tian, had,  with  several  more,  repeatedly  remonstrated 
against  the  innovations  taking  place  ;  and  as  they  could 
get  no  redress,  had  separated  and  formed  separate  congre- 
gations. They  tax  Novatian  with  being  the  parent  of  an 
innumerable  multitude  of  congregations  of  puritans  all  over 
the  empire  ;  and  yet,  he  had  no  other  influence  over  any, 
than  what  his  good  example  gave  him.t  People  every- 
where saw  the  same  cause  of  complaint,  and  groaned  for 
relief;  and  when  one  man  made  a  stand  for  virtue,  the 
crisis  had  arrived  ;  people  saw  the  propriety  of  the  cure, 
and  applied  the  same  means  to  their  own  relief.j: 

Gibbon  tells  us,  that  about  the  middle  of  the  fourth  cen- 
tury, "  A  large  district  of  Paphlagonia  [a  province  in  the 
northern  part  of  Asia  Minor,  on  the  Euxine  Sea]  was  al- 
most entirely  inhabited  by  those  sectaries"  —  the  Nova- 
tians.§ 

The  manner  in  which  Socrates,  the  ancient  ecclesiasti- 
cal historian,  accounts  for  the  spread  of  Novatianism  in  this, 
and  some  other  countries,  deserves  notice.  "  The  Phry- 
gians," he  says,  "  are  a  nation  far  more  temperate  and 
modest  than  others,  for  they  swear  very  seldom.     The 


*  Milner  mentions  Privatus  only  to  call  him  "  an  impostor."  It 
would  have  been  more  satisfactory  had  he  given  us  his  reasons  for 
so  calling  him. 

t  We  should  infer  from  this  expression  that  the  Novatians  recog- 
nized another  principle  of  what  is  now  called  Congregationalism, 
namely — The  independency  of  the  churches. 

X  Jones'  Hist,  of  the  Chh.  Vol.  I.  p.  314,  5th  Ed. 

§  Decline  and  Fall,  Vol.  I.  p.  467.  Harper's  Edition. 


NOVATIANS.  49 

Bcythians  and  Thracians  are  hotter  and  more  prone  unto 
anger  ;  for  they  that  are  nearer  unto  the  rising  of  the  sun 
are  set  more  upon  lust  and  concupiscence.  The  Paphla- 
gonians  and  Phrygians  are  inclined  to  neither  of  these  per- 
turbations. For  at  this  day  [i.  e.  about  the  middle  of  the 
fifth  century]  they  use  no  running  at  tilt,  no  such  warlike 
exercise,  neither  do  they  use  to  pastime  themselves  with 
spectacles  and  stage  plays.  Wherefore  these  kind  ofmen^ 
in  mine  opinion^  draio  nearest  unto  the  drift  and  dispo- 
sition of  Novatus''  letters  [or  Novatian's,  which  he  sent 
abroad  explaining  his  views  of  church  order].  Adultery  is 
accounted  among  them  for  a  detestable  and  horrible  sin. 
It  is  well  known  that  the  Phrygian  and  Paphlagonian  trade 
of  life  is  far  modester,  and  more  chaste  and  continent  than 
any  other  heretical  sect  whatsoever.  I  conjecture  that  they 
shot  at  the  same  modest  trade  of  life  which  inhabited  the 
west  parts  of  the  world,  and  leaned  to  Novatus'  [Nova- 
tian's]  opinion." — Lib.  IV.  Chap.  23. 

Such  representations  of"  a  heretical  sect,"  by  an  impar- 
tial historian  like  Socrates,  are  sufficient  praise  :  and  out- 
weigh, and  give  the  lie  to  all  the  bitter  denunciations  of 
Cornelius  of  Rome,  or  Cyprian  of  Carthage,  both  of  whom, 
though  contemporary,  were  the  prejudiced  and  bitter  ene- 
mies of  Novatian."* 

Ecclesiastical  writers  agree  in  representing  Novatian  as 
strictly  orthodox  in  his  religious  doctrines  ;  and  the  sect,  as 
remarkably  strict  in  their  discipline,  and  pure  in  their 
morals.  Milner,  who  mourns  over  the  broken  unity  of  the 
church, — broken,  for  the  first  time,  by  these  "  schismatics," 

*  Cornelius  calls  him  "jolly  Novatus,"  and  accuses  him  of 
"  guile  and  inconstancy,"  of  "  perjury,  falsehood,  and  inhumani- 
ty," and  of  "sleights,  and  devilish  subtilties;"  and  calls  him  a 
"  deceitful  and  malicious  monster." — Euseb.  Lib.  VI. 

5 


50  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

and  who  "can  by  no  means  justify  the  separation  of  Nova- 
tian,"  is  yet  constrained  to  admit,  that  these  were  the 
most  respectable  of  all  the  dissenting  churches,  and  that 
they  "  preserved  for  a  considerable  time,  a  strictness  and 
purity  of  discipline  and  manners  ;"  and  "  that  they  held  no 
opinions  contrary  to  the  faith  of  the  gospel."* 

Mr.  Waddington's  account  of  the  Novatians  is  worth 
transcribing,  not  because  it  adds  anything  of  importance 
to  what  has  already  been  adduced,  but  as  the  testimony  of 
a  candid  Episcopalian  : 

"  Novatian,  a  presbyter  of  Rome,  was  a  man  of  great 
talents  and  learning,  and  of  a  character  so  austere,  that  he 
was  unwilling,  under  any  circumstances  of  contrition,  to 
readmit  those  who  had  been  once  separated  from  the  com- 
munion of  the  church.  *  *  He  considered  the  Christian 
church  as  a  society  where  virtue  and  innocence  reigned 
universally,  and  refused  any  longer  to  acknowledge,  as 
members  of  it,  those  who  had  once  degenerated  into  un- 
righteousness. This  endeavor  to  revive  the  spotless  moral 
purity  of  the  primitive  faith  was  found  inconsistent  with  the 
corruptions  even  of  that  early  age  :  it  was  regarded  with 
suspicion  by  the  leading  prelates,  as  a  vain  and  visionary 
scheme ;  and  those  rigid  principles  which  had  characteri- 
zed and  sanctified  the  church  in  the  first  century,  were 
abandoned  to  the  profession  of  schismatic  sectaries  in  the 
third."t 

The  Novatianists  were  repeatedly  condemned  by  Catho« 
lie  synods  ;|  but  still  they  increased.  And  if,  as  Milner 
tells  us,  "  purity  of  principle  and  inflexibility  of  discipline 
were  their  favorite  objects,"^  no  good  man  can  do  other- 

*  Cent.  III.  Chap.  0. 

t  History  of  the  Church,  p.  79.  Harper's  Edition. 

f  Eusebius,  Lib.  VI.  Chap.  42.  §  Cent.  HI.  Chap.  11, 


NOVATIANS.  51 

wise  than  rejoice  in  their  prosperity,  even  though  it  broke 
up  the  ecclesiastical  unity  of  the  church. 

For  several  centuries  we  are  able  to  discover  disthict 
traces  of  this  earliest  sect  of  dissenters;  and,  alas  !  thai 
these  traces  should  sometimes  be  the  blood  of  their  martyrs. 
"  Novatian  himself,  was  put  to  death  in  the  persecution 
under  Valerianus."*  And  when  the  strong  arm  of  the  law 
was  moved  by  '  The  Church,'^ — so  called  par  excellence — 
these  conscientious  dissenters  were  persecuted  unto  death  > 
or  "  were  obliged  to  lurk  in  corners,  and  worship  God  in 
private."! 

About  the  middle  of  the  fourth  century  a  war  of  conver- 
sion or  extermination  was  waged  upon  such  of  them  as 
dwelt  in  the  region  of  Paphlagonia.  Macedonius,  the  Arian 
bishop  of  Constantinople,  supported  by  the  emperor  Con- 
stantius,  "  resolved  either  to  convert  or  extirpate  them  ; 
and  as  he  distrusted,  on  this  occasion,  the  efficacy  of  an 
ecclesiastical  mission,  he  commanded  a  body  of  four  thou- 
sand legionaries  to  march  against  the  rebels,  and  to  reduce 
the  territory  of  Mantinium  under  his  spiritual  dominion. 
The  Novatian  peasants,  animated  by  despair  and  religious 
fury,  boldly  encountered  the  invaders  of  their  country  ; 
and,  though  many  of  the  Paphlagonians  were  slain,  the 
Roman  legions  were  vanquished  by  an  irregular  multitude, 
armed  only  with  scythes  and  axes  ;  and,  except  a  few  who 
escaped  by  ignominious  flight,  four  thousand  soldiers  were 
left  dead  on  the  field  of  battle."| 

This  account  may,  perhaps,  be  regarded  as  a  sample  of 
the  treatment  which  these  Puritans  of  primitive  times  ex- 

*  Socrates,  Lib.  IV.  Chap.  22.  t  Pvobinson. 

t  Gibbon,  Vol.  1.  Chap.  21.  p.  467.  Socrates  gives  a  particular 
account  of  this  persecution,  Ecc.  Hist.  Lib.  11,  Chap,  30. 


52  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

perienced  ;  though  not  of  their  usual  method  or  success  in 
resisting  their  persecutors. 

Frona  some  historians  we  should  infer,  that  the  persecu- 
ting efforts  of  the  so-called  Catholic  church  extinguished 
the  sect  of  Novalianists  before  the  close  of  the  fifth  centu- 
ry. Others,  however — and  among  them  Mr.  Robinson — 
tell  us,  that  they  continued,  under  various  names,  down  to 
the  time  of  the  Lutheran  Reformation.* 

*  See  Jones'  Hist,  of  the  Chris.  Chh.  Vol.  1.  pp.  312,  313.  The 
reader  will  find  a  brief  accountof  the  JNovatians  in  Mosheim,  Cent. 
111.  Part  II.  Chap.  5.  Milner  gives  a  much  more  full  account  of 
them,  in  connection  with  the  life  of  his  adn»ired  Cyprian,  their 
violent  enemy. —  See  particularly  the  9th,  10th  and  11th  chapters 
of  the  third  century.  The  reader  may  cellect  nearly  the  whole 
truth  from  Milner,  and  yet,  he  will  hardlj'  fail  to  be  amused  by  the 
efforts  of  that  good  man  to  prevent  his  antipathy  to  dissenters, 
from  running  away  with  his  conscience.  He  seems  to  write  like 
a  man  in  a  strait  betwixt  two.  He  can  by  no  means  approve  of 
Novatian's  schism  ;  yet  he  must  admit  that  the  church  from  which 
he  separated  had  become  very  corrupt.  His  followers  were  cer- 
tainly schismatics  ;  and  yet,  they  certainly  were  very  respectable 
and  virtuous,  and  enjoyed  the  presence  of  God's  spirit. 

"  The  author  would  by  no  means  be  understood  to  encroach  up- 
on the  right  of  private  judgment.  *  *  *  It  is  the  right  of  acting 
according  to  this  right  of  opinion  that  is  contested,"  etc.  It  might 
well  be  answered  :  Of  what  value  is  *'  the  right  of  private  judg- 
ment," if  one  can  have  no  liberty  to  follow  that  judgment  in  ac- 
tion ?  Always  supposing  that  his  actions  do  not  interfere  with  the 
rights  of  other  men. 

"  Can  it  be  right,"  asks  this  learned  historian,  "  for  a  small  num- 
ber of  individuals  to  dissent — and  that  on  no  better  ground  than 
their  own  fancy  and  humor  ?  *  "  Such  however  was  the  first  origin 
of  the  Novatian  schism." — Cent.  III.  Chap.  10. 

One  might  retort  upon  this  advocate  of  Diocesan  episcopacy, 
who  is  "  convinced  that  the  Almighty  has  not  limited  his  crea- 
tures to  any  particular  and  strictly  defined  modes  of  church  gov- 
ernment:"— Can  it  be  right  to  require  a  small  number  of  indivi- 


NOVATIANS.  53 

Of  what  has  now  been  said  of  Novatianism,  this  is  the 
sum :  A  learned  and  pious  presbyter  of  the  church  at 
Rome,  about  the  middle  of  the  third  century,  alarmed  at 
the  progress  of  corruption  in  the  churches,  occasioned  chief- 
ly by  a  disregard  of  the  apostolic  example,  in  admitting  the 
unworthy  to  the  fellowship  of  the  churches, — after  pleading 
in  vain  for  a  reformation  in  this  respect,  separated  himself 
from  the  church  at  Rome,  and  formed  another,  upon  this 
distinctive  and  fundamental  principle — Tlie  church  of  Christ 
should  consist  of  none  hut  the  truly  pious ;  and  if  any  for- 
feit this  character  hy  an  open  denial  of  their  faith  (or,  as 
they  termed  it,  "  a  sin  unto  death")  they  should  he  rejected, 
and  7iever  more  received  into  the  church.     This  principle 

duals,  contrary  to  their  private  judgment,  to  conform  to  "  the  fan- 
cy and  humor"  of  a  larger  number?  li  any  one's  fa-ncj  and  humor 
should  be  consulted,  why  not  one's  own  ?  Why  should  1  be  re- 
quired to  conform  to  a  hierarchy,  many  of  whose  rites  and  cere- 
monies— if  not  its  entire  order — have  no  better  foundation  than 
<'  fancy  and  humor." 

It  is,  however,  very  obvious,  that  the  true  ground  of  dissent,  in 
the  case  of  Novatian,  was  something  widely  different  from  '•  fancy 
or  humor."  It  was  principle — deep,  religious  principle — which 
constrained  him  to  separate  from  the  impure,  and  increasingly, 
and  hopelessly  impure  church  of  his  day.  It  is  the  same,  that  has 
removed  thousands  of  the  best  of  men  from  the  enclosures  of  the 
Church  of  England  in  later  times  ;  the  same  which,  I  verily  be- 
lieve, will  ultimately  reduce  all  the  anti-scriptural  hierarchies  of 
Christendom  to  the  simple  model  of  the  apostolic  churches. 

Socrates  has  given  many  historical  particulars  and  anecdotes  il- 
lustrative of  the  Novatians.— See,  in  addition  to  the  passages 
already  referred  to,  Lib.  VI.  Chaps.  18 — 21.  So  favorable  are  his 
notices  of  Novatian  and  his  followers,  that  his  translator  deemed 
it  necessary  to  defend  him  from  this  "slander."  Sozomon,  an- 
other ancient  ecclesiastical  historian,  has  been  suspected  of  partial- 
ity to  Novatianism;  but,  as  Gibbon  thinks,  without  sufficient  rea- 
son. 

5* 


54  ,     HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

found  advocates  in  all  parts  of  the  Roman  empire  ;  and  was 
adopted  and  practised  upon  by  multitudes  of  the  most  vir- 
tuous and  excellent  persons.  Churches  were  formed  all 
over  the  empire,  and  probably  continued  to  exist,  under 
various  names,  until  the  dawn  of  the  Reformation. 

This  sect,  though  they  may  have  developed  but  a  single 
principle  of  the  denomination  whose  history  I  am  attempt- 
ing to  write,  deserve  the  first  place  among  the  restorers  of 
"  the  old  paths  ;"  and  may  with  propriety  be  regarded  as 
the  van-guard  of  that  army  of  church  reformers,  of  which 
Congresationalists  are  the  rere-ward. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  RISE  AND  HISTORY  OF  THE  DONATISTS,  A.  D.  311. 

These,  Milner  calls,  "  the  second  class  of  dissenters.'' 
Like  the  Novatians,  they  agreed  with  the  Catholic  party  in 
their  doctrinal  belief,  but  dissented  on  the  ground  of  church 
order.  The  Donatists  believed  that  the  church  had  so  cor- 
rupted herself  that  she  was  no  longer  the  spouse  of  Christ ; 
— "  that  immorality  had  unchurched  the  Catholics,  and 
sunk  them  into  a  mere  worldly  corporation."*  They  there- 
fore separated  entirely  from  them  ;  and  would  neither  com- 
mune with  the  Catholics  nor  receive  them  to  their  churches, 
until  they  had  been  re-baptized. 

They  appeared,  as  a  distinct  sect,  early  in  the  fourth 
century,— A.  D.  311-321. 

The  account  given  us  of  the  origin  of  these  dissenters,  is 

*  Robinson. 


DONATISTS.  55 

not  altogether  satisfactory  ;  for  the  reason,  that  the  cause 
assigned  for  their  rise  seems  hardly  adequate  to  the  effects 
developed  in  their  history.*  The  current  account  of  their 
origin  is  briefly  as  follows  :  In  the  year  A.  D.  31 1,  Mensuri- 
us,bishop  of  Carthage,  dying,  three  rival  candidates  appeared 
for  the  vacant  episcopal  chair.  Caecilian,  the  arch-deacon 
of  the  church,  was  the  successful  aspirant.  With  a  degree 
of  haste  and  irregularity  which  threw  suspicion  on  the 
movement,  a  few  of  the  neighboring  bishops  proceeded  to 
consecrate  the  bishop  elect.  Against  this  procedure  Bo- 
trus  and  Celesius,  the  rival  candidates,  and  their  friends, 
strenuously  protested.  They  asserted  that  the  ordination 
of  Caecilian  was  null  and  void  :  1st,  Because  the  bishops 
of  Numidia,  a  neighboring  province  attached  to  the  See  of 
Carthage,  had  not  been  consulted,  or  called  to  take  part  in 
the  ordination  of  the  new  primate  ;j  which  was  a  violation 

*  In  addition  to  the  authorities  quoted  in  preceding  pages,  I 
have  consulted  the  French  historian,  Fleiiry,  who  treats  more  ful- 
ly of  this  schism  than  any  other  author  to  whom  I  have  had  ac- 
cess. He  is  quoted  as  authority  by  most  others  whom  I  have  ex- 
amined. Milner  has  followed  him  very  closely.  Gibbon's  account 
gives  evidence  of  his  familiarity  with  the  French  Romanist.  So 
does  Waddington's.  Fleury,  though  a  papist,  and  sufficiently  at- 
tached to  "  The"  church,  and  abundantly  credulous,  when  the 
honor  of  his  saints  is  concerned, — is  yet,  apparently,  a  dispassion- 
ate and  honest  historian. 

I  have  also  consulted  the  "  History  of  Baptism"'  by  Robert  Rob- 
inson, author  of  Ecclesiastical  R-esearcheSjOtc,  an  English  Baptist 
dissenter,  of  Socinian  principles.  He  writes  like  a  learned  man, 
though  sometimes  rather  violent  in  his  language.  Plis  denomina- 
tional partialities  led  him  to  investigate  the  views  of  the  early  dis- 
senters respecting  church  order  more  fully  than  is  apparent  in  the 
writings  of  most  other  historians. 

t  This  appears  to  have  been  the  title  given  to  the  bishop  of  Car- 
thage ;  who  was  virtually  the  arch-bishop,  patriarch,  or  pope  of 
Africa. 


56  HISTORY  OF  COiSGREGATIONALISIM. 

of  established  usage,  if  not  of  ecclesiastical  law.  2dly, 
Because  one  or  more  of  the  consecrating  bishops  was  a 
Traditor,  i.  e.  one  who,  to  avoid  persecution,  had  delivered 
the  sacred  books  to  the  heathen  magistrates  to  be  burned. 
This,  they  asserted,  was  true  of  the  principal  bishop  con- 
cerned in  the  consecration  of  Caecilian.  3dly,  They 
charged  Caecilian  with  having  been  "hard-hearted  and  cruel 
to  the  witnesses  for  Christ,  or  martyrs,  during  the  persecu- 
tion of  Diocletian ;  and  [that]  he  had  forbidden  food  to  be 
carried  to  them  in  prison."* 

The  Numidian  bishops,  to  the  number  of  seventy,  hav- 
ing assembled  at  Carthage,  undertook  to  investigate  the  af- 
fair. But  Caecilian  and  his  party  refused  to  appear  before 
them  ;  asserting  that  the  Numidians  had  been  prejudiced 
by  the  representations,  and  bribed  by  the  gold  of  the  other 
party .t  This  council,  "  with  the  approbation  of  a  consid- 
erable part  of  the  clergy  and  people  of  Carthage,"  set  aside 
the  ordination  of  Caecilian,  and  consecrated  Majorinus,  one 
of  the  deacons  of  the  church,  bishop  of  Carthage. 

Thus  began  the  schism  of  the  Donatists,  so  called,  pro- 
bably, from  Donatus,  the  name  of  two  of  their  principal 
bishops. 

*  Mosheim,  Vol.  1.  Cent.  IV.  Part  II.  Chap,  5. 

t  Fleury,  Tom.  II.  p.  6G8.  He  says,  the  Numidians  were  quar- 
tered in  the  city  among  those,  exclusively,  who  were  opposed  to 
Caecilian  ;  and  that  Lucilla,  a  wealthy  lady  who  was  personally 
inimical  to  Caecilian.  had  furnished  not  less  than  £2000,  to  bribe 
and  buy  up  the  Numidian  bishops.  Whatever  we  may  think  about 
the  probability  of  this  latter  story,  it  certainly  furnishes  a  hint  re- 
specting the  reputed  morality  of  the  African  church,  in  the  fourth 
century.  For  further  hints,  see  Taylor's  "  Ancient  Christianity^." 
This  learned  writer  in  his  refutation  of  Oxford  divinity,  has  as  it 
seems  to  a  humble  believer  in  "  the  crude  assumptions"  of  modern 
Congregationalism — completely  undermined  the  foundation  of  his 
own  admired  Church  of  England. 


DONATISTS.  57 

From  Carthage  Donatism  extended  into  all  parts  of  Afri- 
ca, and  even  into  Spain  and  Italy.  In  Rome  itself  there 
was  a  considerable  congregation  of  these  "  schismatics." 
That  they  were  not  in  very  good  repute  there,  is,  however, 
evident  from  what  Fleury  tells  us :  That,  although  there 
were  more  than  forty  churches  (houses  for  public  -worship) 
in  the  city,  the  Donatists  could  not  obtain  the  use  of  any 
one  of  them  ;  and  were  therefore  compelled  to  assemble 
in  a  cave,  in  a  mountain  beyond  the  city  walls  ;  and  hence 
were  called  Montenses,  or  Montagnards,  i.  e.  mountain- 
eers.* That  they  occupied  this  cave  for  a  considerable 
time,  is  obvious  from  the  statement  which  he  elsewhere 
makes — that  six  Donatist  bishops,  in  succession,  presided 
over  this  church  of  Montagnards. 

In  Africa  the  schism  became  so  extensive  and  alarming, 
that  in  the  year  313  the  emperor  Constantino  was  induced 
to  adopt  measures  to  stop  its  progress.  He  appointed  com- 
missioners to  examine  the  controversy.  This  court  deci- 
ded against  the  Donatists,  so  far  as  their  charges  against 
Caecilian  were  concerned.  This  decision  might,  perhaps, 
have  been  anticipated  from  the  character  of  the  judges  ; 
who  were  bishops  of  that  party,  from  which  the  Donatists 
had  openly  separated  as  an  immoral  and  corrupt  commu- 
nity. 

The  year  following  (A.  D.  814)  another  court  was  held 
upon  the  affairs  of  the  Donatists,  by  Aelian,  the  pro-consul 
for  Africa.  His  decision  was  also  unfavorable  to  the  sep- 
aratists. Another,  and  larger  body  of  Catholic  bishops 
was  called  together,  the  same  year,  at  Aries,  to  consider 
these  troublesome  matters.  Their  decision  was  likewise 
adverse  to  the  interests  of  the  Donatists.     Against  the  de- 

*  Fleury,  Tom.  III.  B.  X.  pp.  7C,  77.  B.  XII.  p.  396. 


58  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

cisions  of  these  several  courts  of  "  High  Commissions,"* 
the  condemned  party  raised  many  exceptions  ;  and  from 
his  Commissioners,  appealed  to  the  emperor  Constantine 
himself.  After  some  hesitation  Constantine  resolved  to 
hear  the  parties  at  Milan ;  and  give  judgment  in  his  own 
person  upon  these  vexed  questions.  This  he  did  in  the 
year  A.  D.  316.  His  decision,  like  all  that  had  preceded, 
was  adverse  to  the  Donatists. 

These  "  obstinate  schismatics"  were  no  better  satisfied 
with  the  judgment  of  the  emperor,  than  they  had  been  with 
his  "  High  Commissioners."  They  averred  that  Constan- 
tine himself  had  given  a  partial  decision  ;  that  he  had  been 
prejudiced  against  their  rights  by  the  misrepresentations  of 
his  favorite  bishops.  But,  "  as  their  cause  was  examined 
with  attention,  perhaps,  it  was  determined  with  justice.  Per- 
haps their  complaint  was  not  without  foundation,  that  the 
credulity  of  the  Emperor  had  been  abused  by  the  insidious 
arts  of  his  favorite  Osius."t 

If  Fleury's  account  of  the  matter  be  received,  we  cer- 
tainly need  not  wonder  at  the  dissatisfaction  of  the  Dona- 
tists. He  tells  us,  that  the  emperor,  so  far  from  consider- 
ing his  own  judgment  in  the  case  as  superior  to  that  of  the 
bishops,  who  had  already  examined  the  controversy — "  de- 
clared, that  "  he  himself  ought  to  be  judged  by  them  ;  and 
that  he  regarded  their  judgment  as  that  of  God  himself." 
And  Fleury  adds  :  "  He  did  it  then,  only  to  yield  to  the 

*  Fleury  calls  these  bodies  "  Councils ;"  but  Schlegel,  in  his 
note  to  Moslieim's  account,  says  :  "  They  were  not  properly  coun- 
cils, but  rather  courts,  held  by  special  judges  appointed  by  the  em- 
peror; or  to  speak  in  the  language  of  modern  times,  High  Com- 
missions." 

t  Gibbon. — Bishop  Osius,  or  Hosius,  was  a  favorite  with  the 
emperor,  and  a  friend  of  Caecilian. 


DONATISTS. 


59 


importunity  of  the  Donatists,  for  to  close  their  mouths  for- 
ever ;  and  to  leave  no  means  untried  of  pacifying  the 
church."* 

This  solemn  hearing  of  the  parties  before  the  emperor 
was,  then,  no  better  than  an  ecclesiastical  ?'wse,  "  to  close 
the  mouths  of  the  Donatists  forever."  The  great  man  had 
no  thought,  it  would  seem,  of  correcting  the  errors  of  his 
ecclesiastical  commissioners — if  any  they  had  committed  ; 
he  was  too  modest,  even,  to  think  himself  capable  of  such 
a  task.  And  Fleury  certainly  assigns  a  very  sufficient  rea- 
son for  this  modesty,  when  he  says :  "  The  emperor  did 
not  yet  well  understand  the  laws"  [i.  e.  as  I  suppose,  the 
principles  on  which  the  church  should  be  organized  and 
governed]  "  not  being  baptized,  nor  even  a  catechumen. "t 

If  such  be  a  correct  view  of  the  matter,  we  cannot  be 
surprised  that  the  Donatists  were  no  better  satisfied  with 
the  decision  of  Constantino,  than  with  his  ecclesiastical 
commissioners  ;  for  it  was,  in  point  of  fact,  nothing  but  a 
pre-determined  confirmation  and  sanction  of  their  doings. 
The  emperor  consenting  to  go  through  the  formalities  of  a 
public  hearing,  on  the  ground  "  that  the  Donatists,  obstinate 
as  they  were,  would  not  submit  themselves  to  the  judgment 
of  others  ;"| — that  is,  of  any  one  but  the  emperor  himself. 

Constantino,  indignant  at  the  failure  of  all  his  efforts  to 
silence  and  reclaim  the  Donatists,  "  ordered  their  temples 
to  be  taken  from  them   in  Africa  ;"  some  of  their  bishops 

^  Ecc.  His.  Book  X.  p.  56. 

t  Book  X.— Constantine  was  not  baptized  until  near  his  death, 
during  his  last  illness.  Gibbon  comments  with  severity  on  the  in- 
dulgence shown  to  Constantine  by  the  Church. — Vol.  1.  Chap.  20. 
"  Constantine  the  Great  was  baptized  by  sprinkling,  on  his  bed." — 
See  Beecher's  Article  on  Baptism  in  the  Jan.  No.  of  Bib.  Rep. 
1841. 

I  Fleury,  B.  X. 


60  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

to  be  banished,  and  others  to  be  put  to  death.  These  ef' 
forts  were  continued  for  about  four  years,  i.  e.  to  A.  D.  321  ; 
when,  finding  that  violence  did  but  beget  violence — that 
the  "  schismatics"  were  determined  to  resist  even  unto 
blood  ;  he  was  induced  to  repeal  the  penal  laws  against 
them,  and  to  give  liberty  of  conscience  to  the  Africans  lo 
follow  eilher  party  as  they  chose.  The  immediate  effect 
of  this  decree  was  to  increase  the  number  of  the  Donatists  ; 
so  that  they  shortly  out-numbered,  in  some  places,  the 
Catholics.*  This  of  course  alarmed  the  clergy  of  the 
court.  Constanline  being  now  dead,  his  son  Constans,  to 
whom  the  government  of  the  African  provinces  had  been 
assigned — -was  induced  to  send  from  his  court  two  legates, 
Paul  and  Mercurius,  authorized  to  heal  the  "  deplorable 
schism."  They  were  furnished  with  money  and  arms  ; 
the  former,  as  the  Catholics  said,  to  be  distributed  among 
the  poor  churches  ;  the  latter,  as  a  protection  against  the 
Circumcelliones.f  The  Donatists,  however,  suspected  that 
other  uses  were  to  be  found  for  these  things ;  and  facts 
seem  to  have  justified  their  suspicions.  It  was  not  long 
before  these  imperial  legates -commenced  an  exterminating 
or  converting  war  upon  the  African  schismatics.  Conver- 
sion, banishment,  or  death,  were  the  alternatives  placed 
before  the  poor  Donatists.     A  few  embraced  the  former  ; 

*  Robinson's  Hist.  Baptism,  p.  J97. 

t  This  was  tiie  name  given  to  bands  of  African  peasants  who, 
exasperated  by  the  cruelties  inflicted  on  the  Donatists,  undertook 
to  defend  them  by  fire  and  sword.  If  we  may  believe  the  Catho- 
lic writers,  these  "  vagrants"  committed  the  most  wanton  cruel- 
ties. Fleury  tells  us  of  their  putting  lime  and  vinegar  into  the 
eyes  of  some  of  the  Catholics.  He  says  they  spared  neither  the 
aged  nor  infants.  He  is  careful,  however,  not  to  detail  the  cruel* 
ties  of  the  Catholics,  which  provoked  these  acts  of  retaliation.— 
See  his  5th  Vol.  B.  XXHi. 


t)ONATISTS.  61 

but  most  of  them,  one  or  other  of  the  latter  alternatives. 
This  bloody  persecution  continued  thirteen  years,  i.  e.  from 
A.  D.  348  to  A.  D.  361. 

The  accession  of  Julian  to  the  imperial  throne  (A.  D. 
362)  stopped  this  persecution  ;  restored  the  banished  Don- 
atists  to  their  country  ;  and  secured  to  them  their  churches 
and  their  religious  rights.  Julian's  reign  was,  however, 
short.  His  successor,  Gratian,  resumed  the  policy  of  Con- 
stans.  He  commanded  the  temples  of  the  Donatists  to  be 
taken  from  them  ;  and  their  assemblies  to  be  broken  up. 
But  the  strength  of  the  Donatists  was  now  so  great  (A.  D. 
377),  that  the  emperor  dared  not  press  the  execution  of 
these  persecuting  edicts,  from  fear  of  a  civil  war. 

At  the  close  of  this  century  the  number  of  Donatist  bish- 
ops in  Africa  was  estimated  at  400.*  The  Catholic  bishops 
alarmed  by  the  increase  of  the  Donatists,  sent  deputies  to 
the  emperor  Honorius  (A.  D.  404),  to  urge  the  execution 
of  the  imperial  edicts  against  "  the  schismatics"  and  their 
defenders,  the  Circumcelliones.  This  request  was  gracious- 
ly answered,  by  the  imposition  of  fines  upon  the  com- 
mon people,  and  the  sentence  of  banishment  upon  all  the 
bishops  and  teachers  who  refused  to  return  to  the  bosom 
of  the  Catholic  church. 

The  next  year  (A.  D.  405)  messengers  were  sent  from 
the  same  body — the  council  of  Carthage — to  render  thanks 
to  Honorius  for  the  destruction  of  the  Donatists.t  The  tri- 
umphing of  the  bishops  was,  however,  short :  for,  within 
about  two  years  they  thought  it  necessary  to  send  another 
embassy  to  the  emperor,  to  stiV  him  up  to  new  violence 
against  the  Donatists.  These  efforts  not  succeeding,  the 
church  party,  led  on  by  the  celebrated  Augustine,  bishop 
of  Hippo,  despatched  another  commission  to  the  imperial 

*Mosheim.  t  Fleury,  B.  XXII.  p.  280. 

6 


62  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISJI. 

court,  A.  D.  410.  By  these  persevering  efforts  the  Catho- 
lics at  length  obtained  the  appointment  of  an  Imperial  Com- 
missioner^ Marcellinus,  to  visit  Africa  "  with  power  to  bring 
this  long  and  pernicious  controversy  to  a  conclusion."* 

In  obedience  to  the  imperial  orders,  the  contending  par- 
ties assembled  at  Carthage.  The  Donatist  bishops,  Fleury 
says,  entered  the  city  in  procession,  to  the  number  of  270, 
drawing  all  eyes  towards  them  ;  but  the  Catholics  entered 
without  pomp,  in  number  about  286.t  The  imperial  legate 
announced  to  the  parties  the  rules  by  which  the  confer- 
ence, or  rather  the  trials  was  to  be  governed. J  Difficulties 
arose  at  the  very  outset.  The  Donatists  had  had  sufficient 
experience  of  High  Commissions  to  expect  no  favor  from 
such  quarters.  They  could  not  but  remember  that  the 
men  who  had  solicited  this  commission  were  their  determi- 
ned enemies.  And,  that  the  man  who  had  appointed  this 
commissioner  was  the  same,  who,  but  the  year  before,  had 
forbidden  ihem  to  assemble  in  public  for  religious  worship, 
on  pain  of  proscription  and  death, §  They  remembered 
how  their  fathers  were  treated  at  the  bar  of  Constantino : 
and  when  they  heard  Marcellinus  declare  his  inferiority  to 
the  bishops,  in  language  very  similar  to  that  which  Con- 
stantino had  used — "  that  he  ought  to  be  judged  himself  by 
the  bishops"  1 1 — they  could  not  well  avoid  intimating  their 
lack  of  confidence  in  the  pageantry  before  them  ;  and  their 
conviction  that  they  had  been  summoned  rather  to  a  trial 
than  to  a  conference. 

The  result  justified  the  suspicions  of  the  Donatists.  They 
were  formally  condemned  ;  a  scale  of  fines  was  establish- 

*  Mosheim,  Cent.  V.  P.  II.  Chap.  5.  t  Tom.  V.  B.  22. 

X  For  the  particulars,  see  Fleury,  who  devotes  no  inconsiderable 
part  of  his  2'2d  Book  to  this  important  trial. 

§  Fleury,  Tom.  V.  B.  22.  p.  319.         H  Fleury,  ut  supra,  p.  330. 


DONATISTS.  63 

ed,  graduated  according  to  their  wealth  ;  forfeiture  of  goods 
was  to  follow ;  corporal  punishment  was  to  be  inflicted  on 
slaves  and  peasants  ;  the  clergy  were  to  be  banished  be- 
yond the  limits  of  Africa  ;  death  itself  was  to  be  inflicted 
upon  the  more  determined  and  obstinate ;  and  all  their 
churches  were  transferred  to  the  Catholics. 

This  persecution  appears  to  have  been  conducted  with 
great  violence.  The  party  in  power  seem  to  have  resolved 
on  the  utter  extirpation  of  the  Donaiists.  Many  of  them 
preferred  death  even,  to  a  union  with  such  "  sinners"  and 
"  pagans,"  as  the  Catholics  were  considered.  M-iltitudes 
fled  the  country.  Others,  driven  to  despair,  cast  them- 
selves from  precipices  and  perished  suicides.  So  common 
was  this  self-immolation  among  the  Circumcelliones,  that 
Fleury  says,  it  was  their  "  common  play.''''^  But  men  are 
not  much  given  to  this  kind  of  '  play'  until  driven  to  des- 
peration. If  such  was  the  "  common  play"  of  the  Donatist 
party,  we  may  easily  infer  what  was  the  "  common  play" 
of  the  Catholics. 

Augustine  acted  a  conspicuous  part  in  exciting  and  de- 
fending these  persecuting  movements.  He  maintained, 
that,  though  it  was  better  to  draw  than  to  drive  the  "  schis- 
matics" into  the  truth,  yet  it  was  better  to  drive  them  than 
to  have  them  perish  in  error.  He  justified  violence  by  the 
example  of  Paul's  conversion  ;  who  was  knocked  down  and 
made  blind,  etc.  that  he  might  be  driven  from  his  errors. 
He  employed  the  parable  of  the  supper  in  Luke  14:  16 — 
24,  to  justify  the  Catholics  in  going  out  into  "  the  highways 
and  hedges"  and  compelling  men  to  come  in.f  Gibbon 
tells  us,  Augustine  insisted,  that  it  was  better  for  the  Don- 
atists  to  burn  on  earth  than  in  hell.| 

*  Tom.  V.  B.  23.  p.  4G9.  t  See  Fleury,  ut  sup.  pp.  471-2. 

%  Gibbon  gives  a  summary,  but  somewhat  particular  account  of 


64  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

This  violent  persecution  continued  fifteen  or  sixteen 
years,— i.  e.  from  A.  D.  411  to  427 — and  greatly  weaken- 
ed the  Donatist  party.  Geneseric,  the  king  of  the  Vandals, 
who  invaded  and  conquered.  Africa  in  the  year  427,  show- 
ed himself  the  protector  and  friend  of  these  persecuted  dis- 
senters.* Under  his  reign  they  revived,  and  flourished 
again  ;  but  they  seem  never  to  have  recovered  fully  from 
the  blow  inflicted  by  the  long  and  cruel  persecution  which 
they  had  endured. 

this  persecution  in  Vol.  I.  Chap.  21,  and  Vol.  11.  Chap.  33.  Mii- 
ner  puts  the  conduct  of  Augustine  towards  the  Donatists  in  the 
most  favorable  light  he  is  able.  He  extenuates  and  apologizes  as 
as  far  as  his  conscience  would  allow.  He  tells  all  the  good  he 
knew  of  the  bishop  of  Hippo — and  that  was  not  a  little.  Yet  he 
admits  ;  "  His  conduct  towards  the  Donatists  bids  the  fairest  for 
reprehension;  but  he  acted  sincerely.  You  differ  with  him  in 
judgment,  but  it  is  impossible  for  you  to  blame  his  temper  and 
spirit,  if  you  read  him  candidly.  He  carefully  checks  his  people 
for  calumniating  the  Donatists,  and  is  constantly  employed  in 
moderating  and  healing." — See  Cent.  V.  Cbaps.  G  and  10. 

This  is  Milner's  story  ;  others  represent  the  "  saint"  as  the  mas- 
ter spirit  of  the  persecution. 

Mr.  Robinson  is  extremely  violent  in  his  denunciation  of  Augus- 
tine. He  says  :  "■  When  the  Donatists  reproached  him  with  mak- 
ing martyrs  of  their  bishops  and  elders,  as  Marculus,  Maximian, 
Isaac,  and  others,  and  told  him  God  would  require  an  account  of 
their  blood  at  the  day  of  judgment,  he  answered  :  '  I,  I  know  noth- 
ing about  your  martyrs.  Martyrs,  martyrs  to  the  devil  !  They 
were  not  martyrs  ;  it  is  the  cause,  not  the  suffering  that  makes  a 
martyr.  There  is  no  such  thing  as  a  martyr  out  of  the  church 
[i.  e.  the  Catholic  church.]  Besides,  it  was  owing  to  their  obsti- 
nacy ;  they  killed  themselvt's  ;  and  now  you  blame  the  magis- 
trate.' " — History  of  Baptism,  p.  199. 

*  Gibbon  ascribes  the  success  of  Geneseric  to  the  persecution, 
and  consequent  co-operation  with  the  Vandals,  of  tlie  Donatists. — 
Vol.  H.  Chap.  33.  Milner  rejects  this  intimation  with  considera* 
ble  warmth.— Cent.  VI.  Chap.  6,  note. 


DONATISTS.  65 

They  continued  to  exist,  as  a  distinct  body,  amidst  the 
various  revolutions  in  the  country,  for  more  than  a  centu- 
ry and  a  half.  The  last  notice  of  them  is  found  near  the 
close  of  the  sixth  century  ;  when  their  increasing  efforts 
to  rise,  and  propagate  their  peculiar  tenets  were  met  by 
the  vigorous  opposition  of  Gregory  the  Great;  which,  we 
are  led  to  believe,  was  so  far  successful  as  to  drive  the 
Donatists  "  into  corners,"  if  not  absolutely  to  destroy  them.* 

The  view  which  has  now  been  taken  of  the  history  of 
this  "  second  class  of  dissenters,"  will  justify,  1  think,  the 
assertion  that  the  cause  usually  assigned  for  the  rise  of  the 
Donatists  is  scarcely  adequate  to  the  effects  developed  in 
their  history. 

The  simple  question,  whether  Caecilian  or  Majorinus 
should  be  bishop  of  Carthage,  seems  insufficient  to  account 
for  the  immediate  formation  of  a  distinct  class  of  religion- 
ists throughout  Africa.  It  is  true,  "  a  little  fire"  will  kindle 
"  a  great  matter ;"  but  it  requires  some  time  for  the  process 
to  be  effected.  Donatism  seems  to  have  sprung  up  almost 
at  once,  in  its  full  proportions  ;  and  armed  with  principles 
so  strong,  that  neither  flattery  nor  bribery  could  overcome 
them  ;  and  which  defied  even  the  pains  and  penalties  of 
confiscation  of  goods,  corporal  punishment,  banishment  or 
death  itself. 

The  repeated  condenmation  of  the  Donatists  by  the  Ro- 
man emperors,  and  their  legates,  and  high  commissioners, 
has  been  regarded  as  prima  facie  evidence  against  the  sect. 

*  See  Mosheim,  Cent.  VI.  P.  II.  Chap.  5.  This  was  the  same 
Gregory  who  abhorred  human  learning  in  the  clergy ;  who  de- 
fended the  use  of  images  in  the  churches;  who  flattered  Phocas 
the  usurper  and  murderer ;  who  was  an  enthusiastic  promoter  of 
monkery,  and  the  honor  of  his  see. — Mosheim,  Vol.  I.  passim,  par- 
ticularly p.  399,  note  29.  Harper's  Ed.  Also,  Jones'  Hist,  of  the 
Christian  Church,  Vol.  1.  pp.  375—387. 
6* 


66  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

But,  a  consideration  of  the  fact  that  the  very  enemies  of 
the  Donatists  admitted  their  soundness  in  the  faith,  and 
earnestly  desired  their  union  with  the  Catholic  church  ;* 
that  there  was  a  fair  proportion  of  learned  and  pious  men 
among  their  clergy,  and  of  "  truly  humble  and  godly  per- 
sons" among  the  laity  ;t  affords  presumptive  evidence  that 
this  schism  had  for  its  foundation  something  better  than 
mere  caprice  and  prejudice  ; — that  it  must  have  lain  upon 
some  broad  and  important  principle.  Nothing  else  could 
have  prevented  its  early  and  total  overthrow. 

This  presumption  is  confirmed  by  Dr.  Lardner's  account 
of  this  sect ;  a  summary  of  which  is  given  by  Mr.  Jones, 
Hist.  Chh.  Vol.  I.  pp.  388—390 :  "  The  Donatists  appear 
to  have  resembled  the  followers  of  Novatian  more  than 
any  other  class  of  professors  in  that  period  of  the  church, 
of  whom  we  have  any  authentic  records.  *  *  They  agreed 

*  Augustine,  during  the  trial  at  Carthage,  A.  D.  411,  declared 
the  readiness   of  the  African  bishops  to  receive  the  Donatists  to 

their  churches,  and  their  bishops  to  their  Catholic  sees. See  Fleu- 

ry, B.  22. 

t  Milner,  Cent.  V.  Chap.  6,  professes  his  belief,  that  <' there 
were  many  such  [among  the  Donatists]  in  Africa."  It  is  not,  to 
be  sure,  very  obvious  how  this  assertion  can  be  reconciled  with 
another  by  this  historian  (Cent.  IV.  Chap.  2),  where  he  says: 
"  With  the  Donatists  there  does  not  appear  to  have  been  any  de- 
gree of  real  spirituality."  But  it  is  not  my  business  to  reconcile 
Milner  with  himself,  I  marvel  that  some  of  his  admirers  have  not 
attempted  it. 

The  anxiety  of  the  Catholics  to  bring  the  Donatists  into  The 
Church,  and  their  readiness  to  admit  the  ''  schismatic"  bishops  to 
catholic  seats,  is  sufficient  evidence  of  the  correctness  of  Mosheim's 
assertion  :  ''  That  the  Donatists  were  sound  in  doctrine,  their  ad- 
versaries admit;  nor  were  their  lives  censurable,  if  we  except  the 
enormities  of  the  Circumcelliones,  which  were  detested  by  the 
greatest  part  of  the  Donatists." — Cent.  IV.  T.  II.  Chap.  8. 


DONATISTS.  67 

with  Novatian  in  censuring  the  lax  state  of  discipline  in  the 
Catholic  church.  *  *  They  denied  the  validity  of  baptism 
as  administered  by  the  church  of  Rome,  and  rebaptized  all 
who  left  its  communion  to  unite  with  them.  *  *  In  doctri- 
nal senliments  they  agreed  with  both  the  Catholics  and  the 
Novatians ;  while  the  regard  they  paid  to  the  purity  of  their 
communion,  occasioned  their  being  stigmatised  with  the 
title  of  Puritans,  and  uniformly  treated  as  schismatics  by 
Optatus  and  Augustine,  the  two  principal  writers  against 
them,  in  the  Catholic  church.  *  *  Donatus  was  a  man  of 
learning  and  eloquence,  very  exemplary  in  his  morals,  and, 
as  would  appear  from  several  circumstances,  studiously  set 
himself  to  oppose  the  growing  corruptions  of  the  Catholic 
church." 

The  violent  enmity  of  the  professedly  Christian  Roman 
emperors  and  their  favorite  bishops  towards  this  persecuted 
sect  is,  perhaps,  sufficiently  accounted  for  by  two  oft  re- 
peated inquiries  of  the  Donatists,  when  urged  to  unite  with 
the  "  established  church  :" — "  Quid  est  imperitoke  cum 
ECCLESiA  ?" —  What  husiness  has  the  emperor  to  meddle 
with  the  church  ?  "  Quid  Christianis  cum  regibus,  aut, 
QUID  EPiscoPis  CUM  TALATio  .?" — What  have  Christians  to 
do  with  kings,  or  what  have  bishops  to  do  with  the  court  7 
These  few  words  throw  a  flood  of  light  on  the  principles 
of  the  Donatists.  They  show  us  that  they  were  opposed 
to  the  unholy  alliance  of  Church  and  State,  which  was  con- 
summated in  their  day  ; — that  they  had  no  fellowship  with 
the  pomp  and  pride  and  courtly  manners  of  the  Catholic 
bishops,  and  the  consequent  corruptions  of  the  laity — Quid 
Christianis  cum  regibus.^  They  prepare  us  to  believe  Mr. 
Robinson,  when  he  says  : 

"  The  Donatists  thought  the  church  ought  to  be  kept 
separate  from  the  world,  a  religious  society  voluntarily  con- 


68  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

gregated  together  for  pious  purposes,  and  for  no  other. 
With  this  view  they  admitted  none  without  a  personal  pro- 
fession of  faith  and  holiness,  and  them  they  baptized  ;  or, 
if  they  had  belonged  to  the  great  corrupt  party,  re-baptized. 
They  urged  for  all  this,  the  New  Testament.  The  Catho- 
lics, of  whom  Austin  [Augustine]  was  the  head,  taxed  them 
with  denying  in  effect,  if  not  in  express  words,  the  Old  Tes- 
tament, and  particularly  such  prophecies  as  spoke  of  the 
accession  of  kings,  and  Gentiles,  and  nations  to  the  Church 
of  Christ.  "  Is  it  not  foretold,"  said  Austin,  "  that, '  To 
me  every  knee  shall  boiu  V  "  The  Catholics,  then,  were  for 
a  national  church  for  the  sake  of  splendor ;  the  Donatists 
for  a  CGngregalional  church  for  the  sake  of  purity  of  faith 
and  manners.^ 

*  Robinson's  History  of  JJaptism,  pp.  197 — 200. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  when  the  Separatists,  who  were  af- 
terwards called  Independents  and  Congregationalists,  first  appear- 
ed in  England,  the  Church  and  State  party  denounced  them  as 
Donatists.  In  1590  appeared  "  A  short  Treatise  against  the  Dona- 
tists of  England,  tchom  we  call  '  Brownists,'  "  etc.  And  in  the 
following  yesiT, '^  A  Plain  Declaration  that  our  Broxonists  be  full 
Donatists  ;  hy  comjjaring  them  together,  from  point  to  point,  out  of 
the  writings  of  Augustine  ;"  both  by  ''  George  Giff'ard,  Minister 
of  God's  Holy  Word  in  Maldon." — Hanbury's  Memorials,  p.  49. 


LUCIFERIANS. 


CHAPTER  III. 


LUCIFERIANS. BRIANS. 


He  alone  who  attempts  to  investigate  the  origin  of  the 
early  schisms  in  the  Christian  Church  can  be  fully  sensible 
of  the  difficulty  of  the  task.  The  account  given  us  of  the 
commencement  of  the  Luciferian  schism  is  nearly  as  un- 
satisfactory as  that  of  the  Donatist ;  indeed,  the  two  are 
not  very  dissimilar.  "Lucifer,"  sa5's  Mosheim,*"  bishop 
of  Cagliari  in  Sardinia,*  a  man  of  decision,  sternness,  and 
vigor,  *  *  first  separated  from  Eusebius  of  Vercelli,  in  the 
year  363,  because  the  latter  was  displeased  that  the  former 
had  consecrated  Paulinus  bishop  of  the  church  of  Antioch ; 
and  he  afterwards  separated  himself  from  the  communion 
of  the  whole  church,  because  it  had  decreed,  that  absolution 
might  be  granted  to  those  bishops  who,  under  Constantius, 
had  deserted  to  the  Arians."t 

According  to  this  account,  which  agrees  substantially 
with  Socrates'  (Lib.  III.  Chap.  7.  Lib.  V.  Chap.  5.)  and 
Milner's  (Cent.  IV.  Chap.  9.),  the  schism  originated  in  a 
personal  quarrel  between  two  orthodox  bishops  ;  and  was 
irreconcilably  widened  by  the  decree  of  the  council  of 
Alexandria,  which  ordained,  that  "  the  Arian  bishops,  and 
still  more  those  who  had  only  held  communion  with  such 
bishops  might,  after  acceding  to  the  Nicene  creed  [which 
was  the  standard  of  ancient  orthodoxy],  be  received  into 
the  church,  and  remain  in  their  offices."| 


*  Cagliari  was  the  metropolis  of  Sardinia  and  the  neighboring 
isles. — Fleury. 

t  Vol.  1.  B.  11.  Cent.  IV.  P.  II.  Chap.  3. 
if  See  Schlegel's  note  to  Mosheim's  account. 


70  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Socrates  represents  Lucifer  as  particularly  vexed  at  this 
decree,  because,  though  not  present  himself  at  the  council, 
he  had  sent  his  deacon,*  authorized  to  act  in  his  name,  and 
had  bound  himself  to  observe  the  decision  of  the  council. 
Whether  this  was  true  or  not,  it  is  very  certain  that  the  dis- 
satisfied bishop  did  not  long  observe  the  commandments  of 
men,  which  were  contrary  to  the  convictions  of  his  con- 
science. If  bound  while  in  "  The  Church"  to  observe  the 
decrees  of  the  council,  which  spoke  in  the  name  of  the 
Church,  he  soon  relieved  himself  of  all  obligation,  by  sepa- 
rating himself  entirely  from  this  corrupt  body,  and  estab- 
lishing a  church  upon  principles  more  agreeable  to  his 
convictions  of  truth. 

The  materials  for  a  sketch  of  this  denomination  of  Chris- 
tian dissenters  are  very  few.  Of  Lucifer^  the  founder  of 
it,  the  general  voice  of  historians  is  very  favorable.  "  No 
man,"  says  Milner,  "  ever  exceeded  Lucifer  in  courage  and 
hardiness  of  spirit."  *  *  "  Lucifer  was  consistent  through- 
out."t  In  another  place  he  speaks  of  his  "  magnanimous 
constancy"  and  "  sincere  spirit  of  piety"  in  defending  the 
"  Nicene  faith."j:  Again,  in  speaking  of  the  different 
classes  of  dissenters  who  had  appeared  within  the  first  four 
centuries,  he  says  :  "  A  fourth  appears,  the  Luciferians, 
who,  if  they  imbibed  the  spirit  of  Lucifer,  must  have  been 
firm  and  sincere  in  the  "  love  of  the  truth."  And  further 
on,  he  says  :  "  The  spirit  of  the  gospel  probably  prevailed 
most  among  the  Luciferians."  He  afterwards  draws  a 
picture  of  those  times  (the  middle  of  the  fourth  century), 
and  contrasts  it  with  one  of  later  days.  "  Damascus,  or- 
thodox, and  violent  in  the  support  of  orthodoxy,  without 
humility  and  piety,  is  as  strong  a  contrast  to  the  primitive 

*  Fleury  says  irco'deacons,  and  gives  their  names,  B.  15.  p.  58. 
t  Cent.  IV.  Chap.  9.  X  Cent.  IV.  Chap.  4. 


LUCIFERIANS.  71 

bishops,  as  Sharpe,  archbishop  of  St.  Andrews,  in  the  time 
of  Charles  II.  is  to  our  first  reformers.  The  persecuted 
Luciferians  may  seem  to  resemble  the  Puritans  of  the  same 
period ;  while  such  men  as  Eusebius  of  Vercellae,  and 
Hilary  of  Poictiers,  may  be  likened  to  archbishop  Leigh- 
ton."*  This  is  certainly  high  praise,  coming  from  such  a 
man  as  Mr.  Milner. 

Fleury  tells  us  that  Lucifer's  contempt  for  the  world,  his 
love  for  the  Holy  Scriptures,  the  purity  of  his  life,  his  con- 
stancy in  the  faith  had,  previous  to  his  schism,  rendered 
him  illustrious  in  the  church. t  He  was  the  pope's  legate 
at  the  council  of  Milan ;  which  is  a  sufficient  proof  of  his 
rank  in  the  church. 

After  his  separation  from  the  Catholics,  the  same  author 
informs  us,  that  he  was  accused  of  nothing  but  his  inflexi- 

*  Cent.  IV.  Chap.  12.  Damascus  obtained  the  bishopric  of 
Rome,  A.  D.  366,  after  "  a  bloody  warfare"  with  a  rival  candidate, 
''  in  which  there  was  fighting,  burning  of  buildings,  and  many 
lives  lost."— See  Mosheim,  Cent.  IV.  B.  II.  P.  11.  Chap.  2. 

Sharpe,  during  the  protectorate  of  Cromwell,  was  a  Scotch  Pres- 
byterian, and  a  professor  in  St.  Andrew's  University.  He  was 
sent  as  commissioner  to  support  the  cause  of  Presbyterianism,  first 
to  London,  and  afterwards  to  the  island  of  Breda,  to  treat  with 
Charles  II.  about  his  restoration.  On  the  restoration  of  Charles, 
Sharpe  abandoned  his  old  friends,  and  became  the  advocate  of  pre- 
lacy ;  for  which  he  was  rewarded  by  the  gift  of  the  archbishopric 
of  St.  Andrews.  His  perfidy  made  him  odious  to  the  Presbyteri- 
ans. His  cruelty  to  the  Covenanters,  and  his  supposed  agency  in 
the  persecution  of  those  who  dissented  from  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, has  loaded  his  name  with  infamy.  Bepeated  attempts  were 
made  upon  his  life  ;  and  he  finally  perished  by  the  hands  of  nine 
assassins,  who  dragged  him  from  his  coach,  and  stabbed  him  in 
twenty-two  places. — See  Hume's  Hist.  Eng.  Vol.  IV.  pp.  181,  227, 
305,  343  ;  and  Edinb.  Encyc. — Art.  Sharpe. 

t  Tom.  HI.  B.  13.  p.  414. 


72  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ble  obstinacy — they  did  not  accuse  him  of  any  error  in 
faith.* 

Mr.  Robinson  gives  the  following  brief  account  of  this 
sect :  "  There  was  a  party  nearer  to  Augustine  than  the 
Donatists,  who  were  called  Luciferians,  from  Lucifer ;  *  * 
a  man  of  eminent  piety  and  goodness.  He  and  his  follow- 
ers held  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  ;  they  re-baptized  no- 
body ;  and  their  lives  were  exemplary  :  but  they  held 
separate  assemblies,  and  w'ould  not  hold  communion  with 
Austin's  [Augustine's]  worldly  church.  They  ivere  a  sort 
of  Trinitarian  Independents.  The  Donatists  were  Trini- 
tarian Anabaptists.  *  *  Austin  held  all  in  like  execration, 
for  all  stood  in  the  way  of  that  hierarchy  which  this  Car- 
thaginian genius  was  endeavoring  to  set  up.  While  each 
bishop  tyrannized  over  his  own  congregation,  all  was  easy  ; 
but  when  one  in  the  chair  had  begun  to  treat  the  bench  as 
the  bench  had  treated  the  people,  the  bench  rebelled 
against  the  chairman,  and  made  the  people  free  for  the  sake 
of  being  free  themselves."! 

The  cause  here  assigned  for  the  rise  of  both  the  Lucife- 
rians and  Donatists  is  certainly  reasonable.  The  tyranny 
of  the  principal  bishops  over  their  inferiors,  and  the  arbi- 
trary and  oppressive  canons  of  the  provincial  councils, 
which  assumed  the  right  to  make  laws  for  the  government 
of  all  the  churches  within  their  limits, — would  naturally 
excite  the  inquiry  in  the  minds  of  the  oppressed  :  "  By 
what  authority  doest  thou  these  things;  and  who  gave  thee 
this  authority  .?"  This  vein  of  thought  once  struck,  and 
the  Scriptures  taken  as  a  guide,  would  unavoidably  result 
in  the  discovery  of  the  great  principles  on  which  modern 
Congregationaliats  have  built  their  system  of  church  order.f 

*  Book  15.  p.  69.  t  History  of  Baptism,  p.  200. 

I  The  history  of  the  recent  schism   in  the  Methodist  Episcopal 


LUCIFERIANS.  73 

The  Luciferians  seem  not  to  have  been  very  numerous. 
The  schism  was  confined  chiefly  to  Sardinia  and  Spain. 
There  were,  however,  assembhes  of  Luciferians  in  Rome 
as  early  as  A.  D.  387 — 374,  notwithstanding  they  were 
forbidden  to  come  wiihin  a  hundred  miles  of  the  city.  They 
were  not  only  subject  to  trial  and  condemnation  by  the 
Catholic  bishops,  but  were  forbidden  to  appeal  to  the  em- 
peror for  any  revision  of  catholic  decisions.  Under  this 
law,  Damascus,  bishop  of  Rome,  caused  several  Luciferian 
priests  and  laymen  to  be  arrested  and  exiled.     One  of 

Churchj  in  tliis  country,  furnishes  an  illustration  of  the  above  re- 
marks. One  of  the  leaders  in  this  schism— Rev.  George  Storrs — 
has  recently  "  defined  his  position,"  by  stating  his  utter  abhorrence 
of  Episcopacy,  and  his  cordial  reception  of  Congregationalism  or 
Independency.  Now,  what  has  brought  him  and  his  friends  to 
this  position  ?  The  iiistorian  of  that  church  would,  without  doubt 
say  :  The  difficulty  they  experienced  in  that  Church,  in  carrying 
out  their  favorite  measures  for  the  abolition  of  slavery.  A  person 
unacquainted  with  the  whole  affair,  would  very  naturally  ask  : — 
What  connection  is  there  between  the  cause  and  the  effect  .'^  It 
is  only  by  knowing  the  whole  history  of  the  difficulties,  that  we 
can  answer  this  question.  And  even  then,  we  shall  be  unable  to 
perceive  any  connection  between  the  cause,  abstractly  considered, 
and  the  effect  practically  developed.  The  whole  story  may  be 
briefly  thus  told:  Mr.  vStorrs  and  his  clerical  friends  were  easy 
under  Methodist  Episcopacy — though  it  deprives  the  people,  as 
such,  of  any  voice  in  the  government  of  the  church — until  they 
began  to  feel  the  power  of  the  bishops  and  of  the  General  Confer- 
ence in  controlling  their  movements  as  abolitionists  : — the  bishops 
presiding  in  the  Yearly  Conferences  refused  to  put  their  anti-slave- 
ry motions  ;  and  the  General  Confierences  passed  decrees  pro- 
hibiting "  any  travelling  preacher  from  engaging  in  any  agency 
for  any  object  not  approved  by  the  General  Conference."  These 
things  led  the  aggrieved  brethren  to  inquire — "  By  what  authority 
doest  thou  these  things?  and  who  gave  thee  this  authority.?  The 
result  of  this  inquiry  may  be  found  in  the  "  American  Wesleyan 
Observer"  for  Aug.  13,  1840. 

7 


1^4  flISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

these  priests  was  accused  of  holding  a  conventicle  in  a  pri- 
vate house  in  the  night  time.  All  the  efforts  of  their  per* 
secutor  could  not  prevent  Aurelius  and  his  successor  Ephe- 
sius,  Luciferian  bishops,  from  remaining  in  the  city  until 
the  time  of  their  deaths.* 

It  was  the  fortune  of  the  Luciferians  to  live  amidst  the 
fires  of  the  Arian  controversy.  And,  having  little  sympa- 
thy with  either  the  Arians  or  the  Orthodox,  in  their  strug- 
gle for  supremacy  in  the  empire,  they  suffered  persecution 
from  both  parties  :  in  which  respect  they  resembled  the 
Separatists — the  strictest  portion  of  the  English  Puritans, 
and  the  immediate  ancestors  of  the  Congregationalists — as 
well  as  in  their  views  of  Christian  docirine  and  practice,  and 
the  independency  of  their  churches. 


The  Brians. 

Nearly  contemporary  with  Lucifer  (A.  D.  363)  appear^ 
ed  jErius,  He  was  a  native  of  Pontus,  a  province  of  Asia 
Minor.  Fleury  represents  him  to  have"  been  an  Ascetic. 
He  was  the  intimate  friend  and  fellow  monk  of  Eustathius^ 
who  was  afterwards  raised  to  the  bishopric  of  Sebaste,  a 
city  in  the  northern  part  of  ancient  Cappadocia.  This 
elevation  of  his  companion  is  said  to  have  excited  the  jeal- 
ousy and  ambition  of  ^rius.  Eustathius  did  what  he  could 
to  appease  him  ;  he  ordained  him  presbyter,  and  gave  him 
the  chaplaincy  of  a  hospital,  or  a  house  for  the  entertain-- 
ment  of  strangers  ;  but  nothing  would  satisfy  him.  Cares^ 
ses  and  menaces  were  equally  ineffectual,  ^rius  at  length 
broke  away  from  his  friend  and  the  Catholic  church,  and 
began  to  preach  doctrines  which  neither  Eustathius  nor 

*  Fleury,  Book  15th  and  16th,  passim. 


BRIANS.  75 

the  church  could  at  all  approve.  Such,  for  substance,  is 
Fleury's  account  of  the  rise  of  iErianism.* 

From  a  comparison  of  several  accounts  of  this  matter,  I 
suppose  the  truth  to  be  very  nearly  as  follows  :  ^rius, 
like  many  others  of  his  clay,  disgusted  with  the  pride  and 
tyranny  of  the  bishops,  may  have  remonstrated  with  his 
friend  Eustathius  for  taking  a  bishopric,  or  for  following  in 
the  beaten  track  of  episcopal  usurpations.  Eustathius,  with 
the  hope  of  stilling  his  reprover,  ordained  him  a  presbyter, 
and  made  him  his  private  chaplain.  Finding  that  these 
favors  did  not  remove  the  objections  of  ^rius,  he  next  re- 
sorted to  threats.  But  neither  excomimunication  nor  any 
other  ecclesiastical  punishment  had  sufficient  terrors  to  stop 
the  mouth  of  the  dissenter.  Finding  his  remonstrances 
with  his  friend  fruitless,  and  his  efforts  at  reform  in  the 
church  unavailing,  he  at  length  decided,  as  Novatian  and 
Donatus  and  Lucifer  had  before  him,  to  abandon  a  com- 
munion in  which  so  much  error  and  corruption  were  al- 
lowed. Having  resigned  his  station  in  the  hospital  of  Se- 
baste,  he  at  once  avowed  himself  the  advocate  of  the  sim- 
ple and  primitive  organization  and  worship  of  the  church. 
He  maintained  first  of  all,  "  That  (jure  divino),  hy  divine 
appointment,  there  was  no  difference  hetween  bishops  and 
presbyters ;"  2.  That  prayers  for  the  dead  were  wrong ; 
and  3.  That  the  feasts  and  fasts  observed  by  the  church 
on  set  days  were  Jewish,  rather  than  Christian  observances. 

These  doctrines — so  directly  opposed  to  the  teachings 
and  practice  of  the  Church  of  that  day — he  supported  by 
appeals  to  the  Scriptures.  Such  were  the  outlines  of  iEri- 
us's  system  of  church  reform. 

"  He  seems,"  says  Mosheim,  "  to  have  aimed  to  reduce 
religion  to  its  primitive  simplicity."     And,  it  is  a  proof  that 

*Tom.  IV.B.  19. 


76  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

there  were  some  remains  of  primitive  feelings  among  the 
people,  that  his  doctrine  respecting  the  equality  of  bishops 
and  presbyters  "  was  very  pleasing  to  many,  who  were  dis- 
gusted with  the  pride  and  arrogance  of  the  bishops  of  that 
age."* 

This  advocate  for  "  primitive  simplicity"  in  the  order  of 
the  church,  in  opposhion  to  the  usurpations  of  the  bishops  ; 
and  for  the  same  simplicity  in  the  worship  of  the  church, 
in  opposition  to  the  growing  errors,  and  superstitions,  and 
idolatries  of  the  people — found  "  a  great  multitude"  (to  use 
Fleury's  own  words)  to  follow  him,  Armenia,  Pontus, 
and  Cappadocia  were  rent  by  the  schism. t 

The  Catholic  doctors  attempted  by  their  writings  to  refute 
the  "  heresies"  of  this  reformer.  Among  them  Epipha- 
nius,  bishop  of  Salamina,  in  Cyprus,  took  the  lead.  Ac- 
cording to  Fleury,  he  "  refuted  the  heresy  principally  by 
an  appeal  to  tradition  and  the  consent  of  all  the  churches. ^''i 
An  example  which  the  advocates  for  diocesan  Episcopacy, 
and  the  oppugners  of  the  Congregational  doctrine — that 
bishops  and  presbyters  are,  jure  divino,  of  the  same  rank — 
have  wisely  followed,  from  the  days  of  "  St.  Epiphanius" 
to  the  present  time.  Such  arguments  were  then,  as  they 
are  now,  lightly  esteemed  by  those  who  took  the  Scriptures 
for  their  guide.  The  Catholics,  not  content  with  denounc- 
ing, and,  in  their  judgment,  refuting  the  heresy,  resorted 
to  more  pungent,  if  not  more  convincing  arguments. 
"  They  drove  the  ^Erians  every  where  from  the  churches, 
from  the  cities,  and  the  villages,"  But  this,  it  seems,  did 
not  quench  their  zeal  for  the  truth ;  for,  "  They  assembled 
in  the  woods,  in  caverns,  in  the  open  country,  even  some- 
times when  covered  with  snow."§ 

*Mosheim.  t  Ibid,  I  Tom.  IV.  B.19.  pp.  G72,  C73. 

§  Fleury,  Tom.  IV.  B.  19.  pp.  C?-:^,  G73. 


BRIANS.  77 

Thus  these  advocates  for  church  reform  resembled  the 
primitive  Christians  in  their  sufferings  as  well  as  in  their 
doctrines ;  and  shared  the  fate  of  all  who  had  preceded 
them  as  church  reformers. 

Whether  ^Erius  was  "  entirely  Arian,''^  as  Fleury  asserts, 
or  *'  Semi-Arian^^''  as  Mosheim  says,  or  entirely  sound  and 
orthodox  in  the  faith — it  is  evident,  that  he  was  a  man  of 
talents,  and  learning,  and  eloquence  ;  and  what  is  better 
than  all,  a  man  who  regarded  the  Scriptures  as  a  sufficient, 
and  the  only  infallible  guide  to  the  order  and  worship  of 
the  Church,  as  well  as  the  religious  faith  of  Christians. 
This  appears  from  the  very  doctrines  which  he  professed, 
as  well  as  from  his  appeals  to  the  Scriptures  in  defence  of 
these  doctrines.* 

Instead  of  being  branded  as  a  heretic,  ^rius  ought  to  be 
regarded  as  one  of  those,  who,  in  an  age  of  great  degene- 
racy, when  the  Church  had  grievously  departed  from  "  the 
right  way,"  and  was  "  bent  to  backsliding"  yet  more  and 
more, — stood  in  the  ways  and  asked  for  the  old  paths  (Jer. 
6:  16),  wherein  Christ  and  his  apostles  had  walked  ;  and 
having  found  them,  proclaimed  the  truth  to  others. 

Had  this  warning  voice  been  heeded,  the  flood  of  corrup- 
tion which  was  beginning  to  overflow  the  Church  would 
have  been  stayed  ;  the  pride,  ambition,  and  usurpations  of 
the  bishops  would  have  been  checked  ;  the  superstitious 
and  idolatrous  worship  of  the  dead  would  have  been  pre- 
vented ;  and  the  entire  order  and  worship  of  the  church 
would  have  been  brought  back  to  that  "  primitive  simplici- 
ty" which  was  the  beauty  and  the  glory  of  the  apostolic 
churches. 

The  accusation,  that  "  jErius  was  anxious  to  be  a  bish- 

*  See  particularly  Schlegel's  note  to  Mosheim's  account,  Cent, 
IV.  B.  11.  P.  II.  Chap.  3. 


78  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

op,"  and  because  Eustathius  outran  him  in  the  race  of  am- 
bition, he  therefore  conceived  "  a  furious  jealousy  against 
his  friend  ;"*  carries  with  it  its  own  refutation.  Had 
iErius  wished  to  become  a  bishop,  he  certainly  was  in  the 
highway  to  that  honor  before  he  separated  from  the  Church. 
The  confidential  friend  and  private  chaplain  of  a  bishop — 
who  so  likely  to  be  promoted  to  the  next  vacant  see  in  the 
neighborhood  ?  Under  such  circumstances,  would  JErius 
have  broken  friendship  with  the  bishop  of  Sebaste,  had  he 
wished  to  rise  in  the  Church  ?  He  would  have  been  far 
more  likely  to  have  played  the  sycophant — the  humble 
servant  to  his  friend  the  bishop. 

Schlegel  tells  us,  that  JSrius  accused  his  bishop  and  his 
friend  "  of  avarice  and  misappropriation  of  the  funds  for 
the  poor ;"  an  accusation  far  more  likely  to  be  true  than 
that  which  has  been  laid  at  the  presbyter's  door  ;  for  ava- 
rice and  dishonesty  were  sins  in  which  the  bishops  of  that 
age  very  freely  indulged.  The  discovery  of  such  propen- 
sities in  the  bishop  of  Sebaste  would  have  furnished  a  much 
more  satisfactory  ground  for  the  breach  between  the  two 
friends,  than  that  which  Fleury  assigns. 

Be  this  as  it  may,  one  thing  is  certain,  ^Erius  embraced 
one  of  the  leading  doctrines  of  modern  Congregationalism 
—  That,  jure  diviiio,  there  is  no  difference  between  hishops 
and  presbyters — and  acted  upon  one  of  the  fundamental 
principles  of  this  system,  viz.  That  the  Scriptures  are  a 
sufficient  guide  to  church  order,  as  well  as  religious  faith  ; 
and  therefore  deserves  a  place  in  the  history  of  Congrega- 
tionalism. 

*  See  Fleury,  ut  supra— also  Schlegel,  in  Mosheim. 


PATTLICIANS.  79 


CHAPTER  IV, 

THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  PAULICIANS,  A.  D.  660. 

The  Paulicians  were  dissenters  from  the  corruptions  of 
the  Greek  and  Romish  churches.  Their  history  is  involved 
in  much  obscurity  ;  and  contradictory  accounts  are  given 
of  their  religious  tenets.  They  are  often  confounded  with 
other  sects,  as  indeed  were  many  of  the  ancient  schismat- 
ics and  heretics  ;  and  sentiments  are  ascribed  to  them 
which  they,  whhout  doubt,  abhorred.  These  things  are  to 
be  attributed  to  the  ignorance  and  prejudice  of  their  ene- 
mies ;  to  whom  we  are  almost  exclusively  indebted  for  our 
knowledge  of  this  interesting  sect  of  Christians.  From  a 
comparison  of  several  accounts,  I  have  drawn  up  the  fol- 
lowing sketch  of  their  history  and  peculiarities,  so  far  as 
these  come  within  the  design  of  this  work.* 

About  the  year  of  our  Lord  660,  there  lived  in  an  ob- 
scure village  near  the  city  of  Samosata,  not  far  from  the 
borders  of  Armenia  and  Syria,t  a  humble  man  named 
Constantine.  This  man,  acting  in  the  spirit  of  the  apos- 
tle's directions,  though  perhaps  ignorant  of  the  letter,  re- 

*  Mosheim  and  Gibbon  are  my  principal  authorities.  With 
these  I  have  compared  Jones,  Milner,  and  VVaddington,  who  ap- 
pear to  have  relied  almost  exclusively  on  the  first  named  authors 
for  their  facts. 

t  According  to  Phocius  and  Peter  Siculus,  the  two  original  au- 
thorities upon  this  sect,  Constantine  vi'as  a  native  of  Armenia  ; 
but  Samosata,  or  Samiscat,  lies  on  the  Euphrates,  between  36  and 
38°  north  latitude  and  the  same  parallels  of  west  longitude,  and 
within  the  limits  of  ancient  Syria.  The  south  eastern  corner  of 
Armenia  approaches  near  to  Syria. 


80  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ceived  to  his  house  a  travelling  stranger.  The  stranger 
proved  to  be  a  Christian  deacon  returning  from  Syria, 
whither  he  had  been  carried  captive  by  the  victorious  Mo- 
hammedans, who  were  then  extending  their  conquests  over 
the  empire  of  the  East.  Having  enjoyed  the  hospitality  of 
Constantine,  the  traveller  gave  him  in  return  a  Greek  New 
Testament.  It  may  have  been  all  that  he  had  to  give :  or 
perhaps  he  discovered  from  the  conversation  of  his  host, 
that  no  remuneration  would  be  so  highly  valued  as  the 
sacred  book. 

In  an  age  like  that  of  which  I  now  write, — when  it  was 
scarcely  a  reproach  to  a  bishop  to  subscribe  the  acts  of  an 
ecclesiastical  council  by  the  hand  of  another,  because  he 
could  not  write  himself, — a  copy  of  the  New  Testament 
was  indeed  a  treasure  ;  and  the  disposition  and  ability  to 
read  it,  w^ere  alike  honorable  to  the  heart  and  the  head  of 
any  one.  This  honor  Constantine  merits;  for  he  immedi- 
ately began  to  study  with  diligence  the  sacred  writings.  A 
careful  study  of  them  begot  in  him,  as  it  has  in  thousands 
of  others,  a  reverential  regard  for  the  sacred  volume.  It 
soon  became  "  the  measure  of  his  studies,  and  the  rule  of 
his  faith."*  Adopting  this  measure,  and  following  this  rule, 
he  was  brought  gradually  to  .embrace  opinions  entirely  at 
variance  with  the  doctrines  of  the  church  of  his  day.  1.  In 
the  first  place,  adopting  the  New  Testament  as  a  perfect 
guide  to  religious  truth,  he  utterly  disregarded  and  repudia- 
ted all  "  the  opinions,  gospels,  epistles,  and  acts,"  which 
had  come  to  be  of  nearly  or  equal  authority  in  the  church, 
with  the  Scriptures  themselves.  2.  He  maintained,  that 
"  the  New  Testament  ought  to  be  read  assiduously,  and  by 

*  Gibbon.  All  the  quotations  from  Gibbon,  under  this  head, 
will  be  found  in  Vol.  IV.  Chap.  54  of  his  Decline  and  Fall  of  the 
Roman  Empire. 


PAULICIANS.  81 

all  the  people  ;"  in  opposition  to  the  teachings  of  the  church, 
that  the  priests  alone  should  be  intrusted  with  the  sacred 
treasure.  3.  Not  finding  in  the  New  Testament  a  recog- 
nition of  the  three  orders  of  clergy— bishops,  presbyters, 
and  deacons, — he  rejected  this  dogma  of  the  church  as  un- 
scriptural.  He  believed  that  all  religious  teachers  were 
"  equals  in  rank  ;"  and  that  they  should  be  "  distinguished 
from  laymen,  by  no  rights,  prerogatives,  or  insignia."  4. 
The  authority  of  councils  to  govern  the  church,  he  did  not 
recognize  ;  neither  indeed,  were  any  such  institutions  known 
among  his  followers.  5.  In  a  word,  he  utterly  rejected  the 
whole  hierarchal  system  of  church  government  then  in 
vogue.* 

Such  were  some  of  the  results  of  Constantino's  investiga- 
tion of  "  the  creed  of  primitive  Christianity."  These  dis- 
coveries entitle  him  to  a  prominent  place  among  the  ances- 
tors of  the  denomination  whose  history  we  are  tracing. 

In  connection  with  his  primitive  views  of  church  or- 
der and  government,  he  discovered  and  developed  other 
views  of  religious  truth  equally  sound.  As,  for  example 
— the  folly  and  sin  of  worshipping  the  Virgin  Mary,— of 
looking  to  the  mediation  of  saints  and  angels  for  favor  with 
God,  or  of  idolizing  the  work  of  the  sculptor  or  painter; — 
the  worthlessness  of  all  relics,  whether  bones  or  ashes ; — 
the  impiety  of  all  worship  of  the  cross,  a  piece  of  mere 
wood  ; — and  the  absurdity  of  regarding  the  eucharistic  wine 
and  bread  as  anything  but  "  the  gifts  of  nature  and  the  sym- 
bols of  grace,"  the  emblems  of  the  body  and  the  blood  of 
of  Christ.t     Tliat  all  these  important  truths  were  at  once 

*  This    account  of  the  ecclesiastical   tenets   of  Constantine,  1 
have   drawn  vhiefly  from    Mosheim,  Vol.  IJ.  Book  111.  Cent.  IX. 
P.  II.  Chap.  5. 
t  See  Gibbon. 


82  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

discovered  and  proclaimed  by  the  father  of  the  Paulicians, 
I  do  not  assert ;  but,  that  these  were  the  distinguishing 
peculiarities  of  this  sect,  is  perfectly  apparent  from  the  ac- 
counts given  us  by  the  very  enemies  of  this  Protestant  sect. 
And  if  so,  the  taunt  of  the  Romanists — that  "  the  Protestants 
were  the  progeny  of  the  Paulicians," — will  scarcely  be  re- 
garded as  a  reproach.* 

It  is  true,  that  those  who  hated  and  persecuted  these  lov- 
ers and  followers  of  "  primitive  simplicity"  in  the  order 
and  worship  of  the  church,  charge  them  with  numerous 
and  detestable  errors  ;  just  as  the  ancient  heathen  did  the 
primitive  disciples  of  Christ.  The  Paulicians  are  repre- 
sented as  denying  God  to  have  been  the  creator  of  "  this 
lower  and  visible  world  ;"  as  believing  that  matter  was 
eternal  ;  and  that  light  and  darkness  were  the  originals,  or 
"  two  first  principles  of  all  things,"  over  each  of  which 
an  independent  Lord  had  reigned  eternally.  They  are  ac- 
cused of  rejecting  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  entirely  ; 
and  disregarding  the  sacrament  of  the  Lord's  supper  ;  and, 
in  various  other  particulars,  of  following  the  vagaries  of 
Manes  : — In  short,  they  are  charged  with  being  Mani- 
chaeans.  This  charge  they  indignantly  repelled.  "  They 
sincerely  condemned  the  memory  and  opinions  of  the 
Manichaean  sect,  and  complained  of  the  injustice  which 
impressed  that  invidious  name  on  the  simple  votaries  of  St. 
Paul  and  of  Christ."f 

*  Bossuet  says  this,  in  his  "  Historie  des  Variations  des  Englises 
Protestant ;— See  Moshiem,  ut  sup,  note  C.  Tr. 

t  Gibbon.  Manes  or  Manichaeus,  was  a  Persian  inagi,  who  embra- 
ced Christianity  in  the  fifth  century.  He  was,  for  his  time,  learned 
in  the  arts  and  sciences  ;  a  man  of  genius,  eloquence,  and  exuberant 
imagination  ;  grave  in  aspect,  and  simple  and  innocent  in  his  life. 
He  became  the  father  of  a  numerous  progeny,  who  were  troublers 
of  the  church  for  many  ages.     His  great  object  seems  to  have  been 


PATJLICIANS.  83 

That  the  Paulicians  were  not  Manichaeans,  is  evident 
from  their  own  solemn  denial  of  the  charge,  and  from  the 
very  tenets  which  their  enemies  ascribe  to  them.  The 
Manichaeans  rejected  the  Old  Testament  and  a  large  part 
of  the  New  as  fabulous  and  false  ;  and  maintained  that  even 
what  remained,  was  interpolated  and  somewhat  corrupted. 
They  substituted  another  gospel  for  the  writings  of  the  four 
Evangelists. 

In  opposition  to  all  this,  the  Paulicians  cordially  received, 
and  highly  reverenced  the  gospels,  and  acts  of  the  apostles, 
and  all  the  other  books  of  the  New  Testament,  with,  per- 
haps, the  exception  of  the  two  epistles  of  Peter  ;  and  Mil- 
ner  regards  it  as  very  improbable  that  they  made  even  this 
exception.  As  it  respects  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures, 
it  is  obvious  that  one  cannot  easily  receive  and  reverence 
the  New  Testament,  and  yet  reject  and  deny  ihe  authority 
of  the  Old  ;  since  Christ  and  his  apostles  are  continually 
referring  to  and  quoting  the  "  Law  and  the  Prophets." 

Gibbon,  while  he  admits  the  correctness  of  this  charge 
against  the  followers  of  Constantino,  says  :  "  Their  utmost 
diligence  must  have  been  employed  to  dissolve  the  connec- 

to  reconcile  Christianity  and  the  Persian  mythology.  For  this 
purpose  lie  is  said  to  have  given  out,  that  Christ  left  his  system 
but  imperfectly  revealed,  and  that  he  (Manes)  was  the  Paraclete 
or  Comforter,  who  was  to  complete  the  work.  By  the  aid  of  his 
genius  and  imagination  he  wrought  out  of  the  Christian  system 
and  that  of  the  magi,  one  that  suited  his  taste  better  than  either. 
■Some  of  his  notions  are  alluded  to  in  the  text.  For  a  more  parti- 
cular account,  see  Mcsheim,  Book  I.  Cent.  III.  P.  II.  Chap.  5. 
This  sect,  or  branches  of  it,  were  the  bane  and  curse  of  the  Church 
for  ages ;  and  it  seems  to  have  been  a  favorite  device  of  the 
churchmen  of  different  periods,  to  doom  the  troublesome  sectaries 
of  their  day  by  giving  them  the  odious  title  o^  Manichaeans.  They 
acted  upon  a  well  established  principle  of  Lynch  law,  that  "  a  bad 
name  will  hang  a  dog." 


84  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

tion  between  the  Old  and  New  Testament."  Mr.  Jones* 
solution  of  this  difficulty  is  probably  a  true  one.  "  The 
advocates  of  popery,  to  support  their  usurpations  and  inno- 
vations in  the  kingdom  of  Christ,  were  driven  to  the  Old 
Testament  for  authority,  adducing  the  kingdom  of  David 
for  their  example.  And  when  their  adversaries  rebutted 
the  argument,  insisting  that  the  parallel  did  not  hold,  for 
that  the  kingdom  of  Christ,  which  is  not  of  this  world,  is  a 
very  different  state  of  things  from  the  kingdom  of  David, 
their  opponents  accused  them  of  giving  up  the  divine  au- 
thority of  the  Old  Testament."*  The  rejection  of  the  ordi- 
nance of  the  Lord's  Supper,  with  which  they  are  charged, 
may  be  accounted  for  in  the  same  way.  They  rejected 
the  dogma  of  the  church,  that  after  consecration  the  eucha- 
ristic  bread  and  wine  becam.e  the  real  body  and  actual  blood 
of  Jesus  Christ.  Their  candid  adversaries  immediately 
charged  them  with  a  contempt  for  the  ordinance  itself. 

Milner,  who  no  one  will  accuse  of  partiality  towards 
sectaries,  gives  no  credit  to  the  charges  of  Manichaeism 
and  heresy  which  have  been  so  plentifully  heaped  upon 
this  interesting  sect  of  dissenters.  He  speaks  of  them  as 
originating  "  from  a  heavenly  influence,  teaching  and  con- 
verting them  ;"  and  as  being  the  recipients  of  "  one  of 
those  extraordinary  effusions  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  by  which 

*  History  of  the  Christian  Church,  Vol.  I.  pp.  42:3,  424.  5th  Ed. 
Would  such  a  misrepresentation  be  more  strange  than  one  which 
is  found  in  the  "  Encyclopaedia  Americana,"  which  gives,  as  a  de- 
scription of  the  English  Congregationalists  or  Independents,  that 
they  "  now  differ  from  other  Protestant  sects  in  rejecting  any  for- 
mula of  faith,  i-equiring  only  a  belief  in  the  gotipel }  and  their  pas- 
tors arc  not  ordained?''  That  is,  because  they  have  not  received 
the  imposition  of  a  diocesan  bishop's  hands,  therefore  <'  their  pas- 
tors are  not  ordained."  The  first  charge  is  probably  equally 
groundless. 


PAtJLICIANS.  85 

the  knowledge  of  Christ  and  the  practice  of  godliness  is  kept 
ahve  in  the  world."* 

The  particularity  with  which  I  have  described  the  origin 
and  peculiarities  of  the  Paulicians  will  he  appreciated  as 
we  proceed  in  their  history. 

Constantine  having  discovered,  as  he  believed,  the  true 
light,  was  anxious  to  communicate  the  same  to  others.  He 
accordingly  began  to  preach  "  primitive  Christianity"  in  the 
regions  of  Pontus  and  Cappadocia  ;  regions  doubly  dear  to 
this  preacher  of  righteousness,  because  once  the  field  of 
PauVs  labors — the  favorite  apostle  of  the  rising  sect,  and 
after  whom  they  probably  called  themselves  Paulicians. 
The  strength  of  his  principles,  the  reasonableness  and  scrip- 
tural nature  of  his  doctrines,  his  arguments  and  eloquence 
soon  collected  around  him  numerous  disciples.  These 
were  gathered  into  churches,  six  of  which,  out  of  respect 
to  the  memory  of  their  favorite  apostle,  were  named  after 
those  churches  to  which  his  epistles  were  originally  ad- 
dressed. 

The  Paulician  teachers,  aiming  to  restore  the  simplicity 
and  beauty  of  the  primitive  order  and  worship  of  the 
church,  and  taking  the  New  Testament  for  their  unerring 
guide — refused  to  be  called  ''  Rabbi ;"  claiming  only  the 
modest  title  of  "  Fellow  Pilgrims.''''  And  by  a  conceit, 
pardonable,  if  not  justifiable,  they  dropped  their  own  names, 
and  assumed  those  of  the  fellow-laborers  of  the  apostles. 
Constantine  was  called  Sylvanus  ;  another  distinguished 
teacher  was  called  Sergius ;  others  were  named  Titus,  Tim- 
othy, Tychicus,  etc.  "  The  austerity  of  their  lives,  their 
zeal  or  knowledge"  gave  them  great  influence  with  the 
people.  Success  attended  their  labors,  and  the  new  sect 
spread  itself  rapidly  over  Asia  Minor. 

*  Church  Hist.  Cent.  IX.  Chap.  2, 
8 


86  HISTORY  Of  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

After  seven  and  twenty  years  of  labor  and  success,  the 
founder  of  this  sect  took  up  his  abode  near  Colonia,  on  the 
river  Lycus,  in  the  northern  part  of  ancient  Pontus.  While 
here,  complaint  was  made  to  the  emperor,  Constantino 
PofTonatus,  of  this  presumptuous  heretic.  Pogonatus  ordered 
a  commissioner,  Simeon,  by  name,  to  proceed  to  Colonia 
and  investigate  the  matter.  Armed  with  legal  and  milita- 
ry authority,  the  commissioner  investigated  the  case  suffi- 
ciently to  be  satisfied  that  Constantino  was  a  dangerous 
man  to  "  tlie  Church,"  if  not  to  the  State  ;  and  consequent- 
ly condemned  him  to  be  stoned  to  death.  In  order  to  ag- 
gravate the  sufferings  of  the  teacher,  and  to  punish  the  te* 
merity  of  his  disciples,  the  commissioner  placed  the  vene- 
rable Sylvanus  before  a  company  of  his  own  followers  who 
were  commanded, "  as  the  price  of  their  pardon  and  the 
proof  of  their  repentance,  to  massacre  their  spiritual  fa- 
thers."* But  a  single  Judas  was  found  among  them  all. 
One  Justus  alone  preferred  his  own  safety  to  his  teacher^s 
life  ;  and  was  canonized  by  the  Catholics  as  "  a  new  Da- 
vid, who  boldly  overthrew  the  giant  of  heresy ;"  while  he 
was  doubtless  execrated  by  the  Paulicians,  as  a  new  Judas, 
who  basely  betrayed  his  innocent  master.  Their  leader 
dead,  the  disciples  were  scattered  like  sheep  without  a  shep- 
herd. The  laws  of "  the  divine  and  orthodox  emperors" 
against  the  Manichaeans  and  Montanists,  were  turned 
against  these  advocates  of  primitive  Christianity.  Capital 
punishment  was  inflicted  upon  them  ;  their  books,  wher^ 
ever  found,  were  burned  ;  and  death  and  confiscation  of 
CTOods  were  the  doom  of  all  who  harbored  and  concealed 
them.f 

■*  Gibbon.  This  very  commissioner  afterwards  became  a  Fauli-* 
cian  missionary  ;  counting  the  reproach  of  Clirist  greater  riches 
than  the  honors  of  the  empire. 

t  Peter  Siculus,  in  Gibbon,  note  14. 


PAULICIANS.  87 

This  persecution  produced  its  usual  effects.  If  some 
were  frightened  into  apostasy,  others  were  made  more  sta- 
ble and  bold  in  the  faith.  "  From  the  blood  and  ashes  of 
the  first  victims,  a  succession  of  teachers  and  congregations 
repeatedly  arose."  It  was  found  more  easy  to  kill  the  bo- 
dies than  to  quench  the  invincible  spirit  of  the  Paulicians. 
For  one  hundred  and  fifty  years,  they  endured  whatever 
malice  and  power  could  inflict.  Like  the  bush  at  Horeb, 
they  were  enveloped  in  flames,  but  were  not  consumed. 
Primitive  truth  made  them  like  primitive  Christians  :  they 
were  neither  afraid  nor  unwilling  to  die  in  defence  of  their 
faith. 

But  to  be  more  particular  :  The  murder  of  Sylvanus  and 
the  dispersion  of  his  disciples  seems  to  have  quieted,  for  a 
season,  the  fears  of  the  churchmen.  In  the  succeeding 
reign,  of  Justinian  II.  (A.  D.  685 — 711*)  they  were  again 
complained  of,  and  "  their  principal  leader  was  burned 
alive. "t  Blood  was  a  luxury  to  Justinian  II.,  "  and  he  vain- 
ly hoped  to  extinguish  in  a  single  conflagration  the  name 
and  memory  of  the  Paulicians." J  But,  it  is  the  memory 
of  the  wicked  that  shall  rot ;  and  the  seed  of  evil  doers 
that  shall  be  cut  oflT.  Other  leaders  appeared.  One  Paul 
and  his  two  sons  spread  the  "  heresy"  in  Cappadocia,  Phry- 

*  Justinian  II.  was  the  son  of  Constantine  IV.,  surnamed,  or 
nicknamed  Pogonatus  (Tro'jyojv-ojvog,  the  beard),  from  the  circum- 
stance of  his  beard's  beginning  to  show  itself  about  the  time  of  his 
elevation  to  the  throne.  His  reign  began  in  685  ;  he  was  dethro- 
ned, and  mutilated,  and  banished  by  Leontius,  one  of  his  generals; 
who  in  his  turn  was  dethroned,  mutilated,  and  imprisoned  by  Ap- 
simarius  Tiberius.  After  an  exile  of  about  ten  years,  Justinian 
found  means  to  regain  his  throne,  and  rioted  in  the  luxury  of  tor- 
menting and  destroying  his  enemies  for  several  years.  He  fell  by 
an  assassin,  about  611,  unlamented,  as  he  had  lived  unbeloved, 

t  Schlegel,  in  Mosheim.  t  Gibbon. 


88  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISH. 

gia,  and  Pisidia,  being  driven  from  place  to  place  by  per- 
secution. "  Leo  III.,  the  Isaurian*  (A.  D.  716—41),  ha- 
rassed them  in  various  ways,  and  labored  to  extirpate  the 
sect."t  But  all  such  efforts  were  in  vain.  After  endur- 
ing nearly  a  century  and  a  half  of  persecution,  the  Pauli- 
cians  enjoyed  a  little  respite  under  the  reign  of  Nicephorus 
Logotheta  (A.  D.  802— 811) ;  who,  though  an  usurper, 
and  stained  with  crimes  of  almost  every  hue — relaxed  the 
penal  laws  in  favor  of  this  sect,  and  "  gave  them  free  tole- 
ration."! 

This  reprieve  was  but  short.  For  Michael  I.,  Curopa- 
lates,  and  Leo  IV.,  the  Armenian,  the  immediate  successors 
of  Nicephorus  (A.  D.  811 — 820),  ordered  the  Paulicians 
to  be  searched  out,  through  all  the  provinces  of  the  Eastern 
Empire.  Return  to  the  Church,  or  die  !  were  the  only  al- 
ternatives presented  to  the  conscientious  dissenter. 

This  merciless  persecution  opens  a  new  era  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  Paulicians.  Hitherto  they  had  labored,  and 
suffered,  and  died  for  their  faith,  and  had  not,  as  a  body, 
returned  evil  for  evil,  by  resisting  their  persecutors.  Like 
the  apostles,  their  teachers,  when  persecuted  in  one  place 
they  had  fled  to  another  ;  and  thus  had  spread  their  princi- 
ples over  nearly  the  whole  of  Asia  Minor  ;  and  when  seized 
by  the  emissaries  of  power,  and  condemned  to  death,  these 

*  So  named  from  a  mountainous  region  of  country  lying  between 
Cilicia  and  Phrygia,  which  was  his  birth  place.  From  the  family 
of  a  grazier  he  ascended  to  the  throne  of  tiie  Greek  Empire. 

t  Mosheim. 

X  It  has  been  remarked  upon  by  some  ecclesiastical  historian  as 
a  noticeable  fact,  that  during  the  reign  of  heathenism  the  Chris- 
tians generally  suffered  the  least  under  the  worst  emperors,  and 
most  under  the  best.  This  may  be  accounted  for  in  two  ways  : 
By  the  indifference  of  these  infamous  men  to  all  religion  ;  or  their 
desire  to  secure  the  support  of  a  growing  sect. 


PAULICIANS.  89 

good  men  had  yielded  up  their  lives  without  a  murmur. 
But  during  the  progress  of  this  ten  years'  persecution  of 
Michael  and  Leo,  when  death,  or  something  worse,  was 
everywhere  urged  upon  these  primitive  confessors,  many 
of  them  felt  that  patience  had  had  its  perfect  work.  For- 
getting, in  the  desperation  of  their  circumstances,  the  mild- 
er precepts  of  the  gospel,  some  of  the  sufferers  seized  their 
arms,  like  the  Hussites  of  a  later  period,  and  rose  in  rebel- 
lion against  the  tyranny  by  which  they  were  trodden  under 
foot.  The  governor  of  Pontus  and  the  bishop  of  Neo-Cae- 
sarea,  who  were  charged  with  the  execution  of  the  impe- 
rial edicts,  were  the  first  to  feel  the  fury  of  desperate  men. 
Blood  once  shed  by  them,  a  bold  and  organized  resistance, 
or  the  endurance  of  an  indiscriminate  slaughter  were  their 
only  alternatives.  They  chose  the  former.  Some  of  them 
retreated  to  the  recesses  of  the  neighboring  mountains,*  and 
there  maintained  their  independence  and  their  faith.  Oth- 
ers retiring  within  the  territories  of  the  Saracens,  purchased 
liberty  of  conscience  and  the  sweets  of  revenge  by  uniting 
with  the  enemies  of  the  empire.  The  efforts  of  their  per- 
secutors gradually  ceased,  and  with  them  the  resistance  of 
the  persecuted.  Before  the  expiration  of  twenty  years 
from  the  death  of  Leo,  the  Paulicians  had  returned  in  con- 
siderable numbers  to  their  habitations  within  the  Grecian 
territories  ;  and,  so  far  as  appears,  with  the  intention  of 
resuming  their  former  inoffensive  and  Christian  deport- 
ment. They  were  not,  however,  suffered  to  remain  long 
unmolested. 

Theodora,  the  regent  of  the  empire  during  the  minority 


*  The  Taurus  mountains  in  different  ranges,  and  under  various 
names,  intersect  Asia  from  West  to  East,  almost  from  the  Mge&n 
Sea  to  the  Caspian.  A  long  range  of  them  lie  not  far  from  Neo* 
Caesarea,  between  the  Euphrates  and  the  Black  Sea. 

8* 


90  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

of  her  son  Michael  III.,  and  sainted  by  the  Greek  church  as 
the  restorer  and  defender  of  image  worship—"  decreed  that 
the  Pauhcians  should  be  either  exterminated  by  fire  and 
sword,  or  brought  back  to  the  Greek  church."*  Such  a 
decree  was  in  keeping  with  the  character  of  its  authoress  ; 
and  the  execution  of  it  was  in  no  way  unworthy  of  her 
saintship.  Her  officers  and  soldiers  commissioned  to  do 
this  work  of  blood,  discharged  their  trust  in  a  most  cruel 
manner.  These  dogs  of  war  explored  the  cities  and  villa- 
ges, and  even  the  mountains  of  Asia  Minor  in  pursuit  of 
their  victims.  And  so  successful  were  they,  that  they  con- 
fiscated the  property,  and  destroyed  the  lives  of  about  one 
hundred  thousand  Paulicians.  The  miserable  remnant  of 
this  unfortunate  people,  took  refuge  from  Christian  !  per- 
secution, among  the  followers  of  the  false  prophet.  Hos- 
pitably received  by  the  Mohammedans,  the  fugitives  formed 
an  alliance  with  these  implacable  enemies  of  the  empire, 
and  chose  for  their  leader  Carbeas,  a  valiant  soldier,  once 
a  commander  under  one  of  the  generals  of  the  East,  and 
the  son  of  a  Paulician  martyr.  The  mountains  of  Taurus 
became  a  second  time  the  home  of  the  persecuted  disciples 
of  Constantino.  Here  they  fortified  a  city,  and  supplied  it 
with  provisions  and  munitions  of  war,  as  their  dernier  re- 
sort. Tibrica,  or  Tephrice  became  the  metropolis  of  the 
Paulician  mountaineers. t  From  this  strong  hold  they 
made  incursions  upon  the  surrounding  provinces.  For  more 
than  thirty  years,  or  till  near  the  close  of  the  ninth  century, 


*  Mosheim. 

t  The  precise  situation  of  this  city,  1  cannot  ascertain.  Gibbon 
says,  it  was  between  Siwas  and  Trebizond  ;  but  these  are  very  far 
apart,  according  to  the  best  authorities  to  wliich  I  have  access. 
It  was,  probably,  not  far  from  the  intersection  of  the  40th  parallels 
of  north  latitude  and  east  longitude  from  Greenwich,  that  this 
strong  hold  among  the  mountains  of  the  Taurus  was  erected. 


PAULICIANS. 


91 


this  warfare  was  carried  on  with  various  success,  and  great 
severity.  Immense  numbers  perished  on  either  side.  So 
formidable  did  tiiese  enemies  at  length  become,  ihat  several 
provinces  of  the  empire  were  actually  ruined  by  them  ;  and 
the  emperor,  Michael  III.,  marching  to  the  rescue  of  his 
subjects,  was  defeated,  and  compelled  to  flee  before  "the 
heretics  whom  his  mother  had  condemned  to  tbe  flames." 
Another  emperor,  Basil,  was  obliged  to  send  an  envoy  to 
the  mountain  metropolis,  to  treat  with  his  rebellious  sub- 
jects, as  with  a  sovereign  people.* 

On  the  death  of  Carbeas,  Chrysocheir  became  the  leader 
of  the  Paulician  bands.  "In  alliance  with  the  Moslems, 
he  boldly  penetrated  into  the  lieart  of  Asia;  the  troops  of 
the  frontier  and  the  palace  oven,  were  repeatedly  over- 
thrown ;  the  edicts  of  persecution  were  answered  by  the 
capture  of  Nice  and  Nicomedia,  of  Ancyra  and  Epliesus."t 
Basil  trembled  upon  his  throne ;  and  humbly  sued  for 
peace.  But,  flushed  with  victory,  and  beginning  now  to 
lust  for  empire,  Chrysocheir  spurned  the  "  royal  donative 
of  gold,  and  silver,  and  silk  garments  ;"  demanding,  as  tiie 
only  price  of  peace,  the  abdication  of  the  throne  of  the 
Eastern  Empire.  The  tables  were  now  completely  chan- 
ged. The  quc'tion  was  no  longer.  Shall  the  followers  of 
Constantine  be  tolerated  ?  but.  Shall  the  emperor  of  Con- 
stantinople retain  the  throne  of  his  ancestors  ?  Basil  felt 
that  it  must  be  victory  or  death  ;  and  rousing  himself  and 
his  troops  for  the  contest,  he  marched  upon  the  haughty 
sectaries.     God  made    him   the  instrument  by  which  the 


*  This  envoy  was  I'eter  Siculus  ;  who  has  given  tlie  most  par- 
ticular and  correct  account  of  the  Paulicians  ;  though  Gibbon 
represents  him  as  sufRcicntly  prejudiced  against  these  dissenters 
from  the  hierarchy. 

t  Gibbon. 


92  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIOiNiiLlSM. 

degenerate  Paulicians  were  taught,  that  he  who  taketh  the 
sword  shall  perish  by  the  sword.  The  army  of  Chrysocheir 
was  routed;  and  though,  for  a  time,  in  the  strong  hold  of 
Tibrica,  his  followers  defied  the  efibrts  of  the  emperor's 
troops,  it  ultimately  fell  before  his  victorious  arms  ;  and 
the  haughty  leader  of  the  Paulicians  was  surprised  and 
slain,  and  Basil  had  the  desire  of  his  heart,  in  being  per- 
mitted to  shoot  three  arrows  into  the  lifeless  head  of  his 
enemy.  His  followers,  who  escaped  with  life,  sued  for 
mercy  or  fled  to  the  borders  of  the  empire.  This  defeat 
was  a  death  blow  to  the  growing  power  of  the  Paulicians; 
but  their  independence  and  their  faith,  they  still  main- 
tained. 

As  early  as  the  middle  of  the  eighth  century,  some  of 
these  "  heretics"  had  found  their  way  from  the  banks  of 
the  Euphrates  and  the  mountains  of  Armenia  to  the  capi- 
tal of  the  empire.  It  may  have  been  in  the  ranks  of  the 
Isaurian  bands,  which  Constantine  V.  raised  in  his  "  pater- 
nal mountains,"  to  deliver  his  capital  from  the  usurpations 
of  the  image  worshippers.* 

From  Constantinople  they  spread  themselves  into  Thrace. 
From  thence,  they  found  their  way  to  the  Bulgarians,  a 
people  living  along  the  Danube,  who  had  then  recently 
been  converted  to  Christianity.     This  was  a  favorable  soil 

*  Constantine  was  the  sworn  enemy  of  images  ;  and  proceeded 
as  roughly  in  the  overthrow  of  them,  as  Theodora  afterwards  did 
in  the  re-establishment  of  them.  In  his  absence  from  Constanti- 
nople the  lovers  of  images  raised  a  rebellion,  seized  the  capital, 
and  overturned  the  government.  Constantine  immediately  retired 
to  Isauria,  the  home  of  his  ancestors,  and  having  raised  an  army 
of  hardy  and  faithful  soldiers,  marched  to  Constantinople,  and  re- 
gained his  throne.  In  this  army  the  Paulicians  would  have  been 
very  likely  to  enlist,  as  they  were  the  most  inveterate  haters  of 
imagres. 


FAULICIANS.  93 

for  tlie  primitive  doctrines  o(  the  Paiilicians  ;  and  here,  as 
in  Thrace,  they  took  deep  root  ;  and  for  eight  or  nine  cen- 
turies, if  not  longer,  continued  to  live  and  thrive.*  From 
Bulgaria  the  Paulicians  nnigrated  into  Italy  and  Slavonia ; 
and  thence  spread  into  other  parts  of  Europe. t 

In  the  tenth  century  the  European  Paulicians  were  con- 
siderably strengthened  by  emigrations  from  their  native 
regions,  and  by  proselytes  in  Europe.  They  possessed  the 
city  of  Philippopolis,  at  the  head  of  navigation  on  the  Me- 
rise,  or  Hebrus,  and  held  "  the  keys  of  Thrace."  A  line 
of  their  villages  and  castles  extended  thence  along  through 
Macedonia  and  Epirus  towards  the  Adriatic.  They  were 
a  brave  and  warlike  people,  and  "their  voluntary  bands 
were  distinguished  in  the  armies  of  the  empire."  These 
facts  illustrate  their  numbers  and  importance.  Notwith- 
standing this  they  were  liable  to  occasional  abuse,  if  not  to 
persecution,  from  the  government  and  the  church. 

During  the  eleventh  century  they  experienced  much  suf- 
fering from  the  reigning  powers.  Still  they  retained  their 
principles  and  importance.  One  of  the  emperors  of  this 
century,  Alexius  Comnenus,  adopted  a  new  method  of  sub- 
duing the  obstinacy  of  these  heretics.  He  went  in  person 
to  their  principal  city,  and  spent  whole  days  in  disputing 
with  these  schismatics.  "  Not  a  i'ew,''''  we  are  told,  "  gave 
up  to  this  august  disputant  and  his  associates."  We  shall 
cease  to  wonder  at  this,  when  we  iearn,thal  the  arguments 
of  the  emperor  and  his  suit  were  supported  by  the  promise 
of  "rich  presents,  honors,  privileges,  lands  and  houses" 
1o  those  who  should  be  convinced,  and  retract  their  errors, 

*  Mosheim  says,  that  "  there  certainly  were  sf>me  there  in  the 
seventeenth  century."  But,  they  are  probably  degenerate  plants 
I'roiTi  a  good  stock. 

t  Mosheim,  Cent.  X.  P.  II.  Chap.  5. 


94  HISTORY  OF  COJNGREGATIONALISM. 

and  return  to  the  bosom  of  the  church  ;  while  to  the  obsti- 
nate, perpetual  imprisonment  was  promised.* 

"  As  early  as  the  middle  of  the  eleventh  century  the 
Paulicians  were  numerous  in  Lombardy  and  Isubria,  and 
especially  in  Milan  ;"t  and  strolling  bands  of  them  were 
to  be  found  in  France,  Germany,  and  other  countries,  "who 
by  their  appearance  of  sanctity  captivated  no  small  num- 
ber of  the  common  people. "t  Their  missionaries  and 
teachers  seem  to  have  found  their  way  into  almost  every 
part  of  Europe,  and  made  converts  wherever  they  went. 
In  Italy  they  were  called  Paterini  and  Catheri  or  Gazari 
(y.a&aool)  i.  e.  the  pure  or  puritans.  In  France  they  were 
called  Albigenses.  Among  the  names  that  were  given 
them  was  that  of  Separates,  a  name  which  we  shall  hear 
frequently  in  the  progress  of  this  history. 

The  light  of  the  Inquisitorial  fires  enable  us  to  trace  this 
interesting  sect  of  dissenters,  from  the  eleventh  century 
down  to  the  dawn  of  the  Lutheran  Reformation.  And 
though  as  a  body  they  had,  doubtless,  greatly  degenerated 
in  principles  and  morals,  yet  the  rack  and  the  stake  bear 
record  that  even  during  the  darkest  ages,  many  of  the  dis- 
ciples of  Constantino  were  not  unworthy  of  the  name  of 
Paulicians. 

Scattered  in  every  clime,  mingling  with  people  of  every 
name — Greeks,  and  Romans,  and  Saracens,  and  barbari- 
ans, and  the  objects  of  hatred  and  persecution  for  a  thou- 
sand years — it  would  be  strange  indeed  had  they  retained 
perfectly  the  principles  and  doctrines  of  their  venerable 
founder.  Still  they  stand  out  on  the  page  of  history  among 
the  most  interesting  bodies  of  dissenters  from  the  usurpa- 
tions, and  corruptions,  and  tyranny  of  the  Greek  and  Rom- 

*  See  Mosheim,  Cent.  XI.  B.  III.  P.  II.  Chap.  5. 
t  Mosheim. 


"^VALDENSES  AND  ALBIGENSES.  95 

ish  churches.  And,  as  their  founder,  by  the  light  of  sacred 
truth,  discovered  and  proclaimed  several  of  the  leading 
tenets  of  Congregationalism,  the  Paulicians  deserve  a 
prominent  place  among  the  ecclesiastical  ancestors  of  this 
denomination,  to  whose  history  these  pages  are  devoted. 


CHAPTER  V. 

HISTORY  OF  THE  WALDENSES  AND  ALBIGENSES,  A.  D.   1100. 

No  ancient  sects — if  sects  they  may  be  called — have 
excited  more  interest,  and  received  more  attention  than  the 
Waldenses  and  Alhigenses ;  and  yet,  several  important 
points  in  their  history  are  very  far  from  being  satisfactorily 
.settled.  The  very  heading  of  this  chapter,  suggests  some 
of  them. — Are  the  Waldenses  and  Albigenses  the  same 
sect,  under  different  names }  or  are  they  independent 
branches  of  the  primitive  church  }  Did  they  rise  in  the 
twelfth  century,  or  were  they  of  a  much  earlier  origin  } 

Mr.  Gilly,  in  his  learned  introduction  to  the  Memoirs  of 
Felix  NefF,  maintains — "  that  the  Italian  Waldenses,  the 
Albigenses,  the  Subalpins  of  DauphinA  and  Provence,  and 
the  Pyrenean  Waldenses,  were  all  independent  of  each 
other,  and  remains  or  branches  of  the  primitive  churches  in 
those  parts."* 

The  Catholic  bishop  Bossuet,  in  his  "  Variations  des  En- 
glises  Protestantes,"  maintains — and  Mr.  Waddington  thinks 
successfullyt — that  the  Albigenses  "  held  many  opinions 

*  Introduction,  particularly,  p.  38. 

t  Hibt.  of  the  Church,  Harper's  £d.  pp.552,  553. 


96  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALlSI\T. 

which  are  condemned  by  all  prolestants."  "  Respecting  the 
Vaudois"  [or  Waldenses],  the  same  author  says,  '•  he  shows 
the  groat  uncertainty,  perhaps  the  entire  vanity,  of  their 
claims  to  a  separate  descent  from  the  ante-Nicene  Church"* 
— or  the  primitive  church. 

Milner  seems  to  have  regarded  the  Albigenses  as  "  a 
branch  of  the  Waldenses  ;"t  and  "  the  proper  founder  of 
them,  Claudius  of  Turin,  the  Christian  hero  of  the  7iinth 
century."! 

Mosheim — upon  most  topics  in  ecclesiastical  history,  a 
standard  authority — attributes  the  origin  of  the  Waldenses 
to  the  labors  of  Peter  Waldo,  or  Waldus,  or  Valdo,  in  the 
twelfth  century ;  and  declares,  that  "  those  who  assign  a 
different  origin  to  the  Waldensians  *  *  have  no  authori- 
ties for  their  opinions,  and  are  refuted  by  all  the  histori- 
ans."§  He  admits,  however,  that  "  long  before  these  times 
[i.  e.  twelfth  century]  there  had  been  resident  in  the  vallies 
of  Piedmont,  persons  who  rejected  the  prevailing  opinions 
of  the  Romish  church,  and  who  agreed  in  many  things  with 
the  Waldensians."|| 

The  Albigenses  he  treats  as  a  branch  of  the  great  Pauli- 
cian  family  ;  and  supposes  the  name  given  to  them  in 
France  was  derived  from  the  circumstance  that  they  were 
first  condemned  by  a  council  which  sat  at  Alhi^  or  Albigea, 
a  town  of  Aquitain,  or  Aquilania,  the  name  anciently  given 
to  the  south  western  part  of  France.^ 

Gibbon  takes  substantially  the  same  view  of  the  Albigois  : 
— he  speaks  of  them  as  identical  with  the  Faulicians.** 


*  Hist,  of  the  Church,  pp.  o-Vi,  :"3-3.         f  Cent   XIII.  Chap.  3. 

I  Cent  Xlll.Chap    I.         §  Booli  III.  Cent.  Xil.  P.  II.  Chap.  5. 

II  Cent.  XI.  P.  11.  Ch:ip.  5. 

H  The  name  Albigrnses    seems   to    have   been    a  common   title 
given  to  heretics  of  all  descriptions  in  France,  at  one  period, 
**  Decline  and  Fall,  Vol   iV.  Chap.  5J. 


Waldenses  and  albigenses.  97 

Mr.  Jones,  in  his  valuable  history  of  the  Waldenses,  while 
he  shows  conclusively,  as  it  seems  to  me,  their  very  high 
antiquity,  treats  the  Albigois  or  Albigenses  as  but  another 
name  for  the  Waldenses. 

To  this  list  of  writers  might  be  added  the  names  of  Beza, 
and  Milton,  and  Moreland,  and  Ailix,  and  Andrew  Fuller, 
all  of  whom  maintain,  that  the  Waldenses  were  of  primi- 
tive, if  not  of  apostolic  origin.  And,  on  the  other  side, 
Perrin,  a  French  Protestant  who  has  written  the  history  of 
the  Waldenses,  seems  to  concede,  that  they  originated  in 
the  twelfth  century  under  the  preaching  of  Peter  Waldo  of 
Lyons. 

To  the  controverted  points  already  mentioned,  may  be 
added  others,  as — Were  they  anciently  what  they  now  are  ? 
Were  they  tinctured  with  Manichaean  errors  ?  Did  they 
n^aintain  or  reject  infant  baptism  .?  And,  what  is  more  to 
our  present  purpose.  Were  they,  in  the  order  of  their 
churches.  Episcopalians,  Presbyterians,  or  neither  ? 

Mr.  Waddington  says:  "  They  maintained  and  imitated 
the  divine  institution  of  the  three  orders  in  the  priesthood."* 

Dr.  Miller,  in  his  "  Letters  to  Presbyterians,"  asserts, 
that  they  were  aw^z-episcopal,  and  substantially  Presbyte- 
rian in  their  church  government. 

Amidst  this  conflict  of  opinions  a  person  will  find  strong 
inducements  to  act  the  part  of  an  eclectic,  and  choose  from 
all  parties  what  seems  most  probable  ;  or,  Manichaean-like, 
attempt  a  reconciliation  of  these  conflicting  statements  : 
and,  if  one  should  even  venture  an  independent  opinion — 
when  the  Rabbins  so  disagree — he  could  hardly  be  charge- 
able with  presumption. 

The  latter  course,  after  examining  all  the  authorities  up- 
on this  subject  within  my  reach— and  they  are  more  nume- 

*  Hist,  of  the  Chh.  Harper's  Ed.  p.  291. 

9 


98  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

rous  than  upon  any  topic  on  which  I  have  yet  touched — I 
have  ventured  to  adopt ;  though  not  to  the  exclusion  of  the 
other  two  courses  suggested  above.  The  view  which,  on 
the  whole,  is  most  satisfactory  to  my  own  mind,  is  substan- 
tially this  :  The  Waldenses  or  Vaudois,  and  the  Albigen- 
ses  or  Albigois,  who  were  discovered  in  the  twelfth  centu- 
ry among  the  vallies  of  the  Alps  and  Pyrenees,  were  not 
so' much  independent  branches  of  the  apostolic  church,  as 
the  collected  remnants  of  several  sects  which  had  been  per- 
secuted unto  death  in  different  ages,  by  the  Greek  and  Ro- 
mish churches.  Many  of  these  sectaries  would  wander 
from  country  to  country,  seeking  rest ;  and  wherever  ihey 
could  find  an  asylum  from  intolerance  and  persecution, 
there  would  they  stop  ;  that  would  become  their  pilgrim- 
home.  Such  a  resting  place  being  discovered  by  one  or 
more  of  these  Christian  wanderers,  others  would  be  inform- 
ed immediately  of  the  safe  retreat,  and  thither  resort. 
Thus  their  numbers  would  be  increased.  The  places  most 
likely  to  furnish  rest  to  these  sufferers  for  conscience  sake, 
would  be  retired  and  mountainous  sections  of  country — the 
least  known  and  the  least  accessible  to  the  busy  world. 
Here  they  might  live,  and  multiply,  and  extend  their  faith, 
for  a  long  period,  without  exciting  much  interest  or  notice 
from  the  great  men  of  the  Church  or  the  State.  It  deserves 
notice,  that  in  just  such  places  the  Waldenses  and  Albigen- 
ses  of  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries  were  chiefly  found. 
Such  countries  were  Savoy  and  Piedmont  (now  known  as 
Sardinia),  so  famed  for  heretics.  These  territories  were 
embosomed  in  the  lofty  Alps  ;  diversified  with  hill  and 
dale,  and  divided  by  deep-cut  vallies  ;  which,  though  open- 
ing into  fruitful  slopes  within,  were  fortified  by  the  God  of 
the  hills,  and  rendered  well  nigh  inaccessible  to  any  but 
practised  feet.     In  these  vallies,  and  along  the  foot  of  these 


WALDENSES  AND  ALBIGENSES.  99 

tovverincr  mountains,*  and  up  their  verdant  sides,  nnultitudes 
of  devout  persons  were  discovered  by  the  vigilance  of  the 
Romish  persecutors  of  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries. 

The  same  general  description  will  answer  for  the  coun- 
tries of  Dauphine,  and  Provence,  for  the  French  and  Span- 
ish sides  of  the  Pyrenees,  and  for  Bohemia — all  of  which 
places  were  noted  in  the  annals  of  the  Inquisition  for  har- 
boring heretics  from  the  Romish  faith. 

Now,  my  theory  is  this  :  To  some  of  these  secluded  spots 
a  few  of  the  devout  dissenters  of  early  times  found  their 
way,  and  commenced  settlements.  Thither  may  have  fled, 
first  of  all,  some  of  the  earliest  of  all  dissenters — the  fol- 
lowers of  Novatian  ;  with  these,  some  remnants  of  the  Do- 
natists  may  afterwards  have  found  a  home  ;  the  Luciferi- 
ans,  and  ^fians,  and  Paulicians  and  other  sufferers  may 
have  followed,  in  smaller  or  larger  numbers,  at  different 
periods.  The  very  impulse  which  would  direct  the  steps 
of  one  of  these  sects,  to  a  land  of  toleration,  or  to  the  pro- 
tection of  the  mountains,  would  lead  them  all  ihither.  I 
mean  not,  of  course,  to  the  same  country,  or  the  same  moun- 
tains ;  but  to  such  as  were  nearest  to  them.  Those  first 
established  in  their  new  homes  would  welcome  the  perse- 
cuted of  all  sects  who  should  flee  to  them  from  Catholic 
violence.  These  bleeding  remnants  of  different  bodies, 
though  disagreeing  somewhat  in  other  respects,  would  all 
agree  in  their  hearty  hatred  of  the  corrupt  hierarchies  which 
had  driven  them  out  from  the  home  of  their  fathers  and 
the  land  of  their  nativity. 

These  persecuted  Christians,  drawn  together  by  com- 
mon sympathy,  at  different  periods  of  time,  and  from  dif- 

*  The  name  d?  Piedmont  is  composed  of  two  Latin  words,  which 
signify  foot  of  the  mountains,  viz. — pede /oof,  and  montium  of  the 
mountains. 


100  HISTORY  OF  CONGKEGATIONALISM. 

ferent  sections  of  coantry,  and  with  religious  sentiments 
varying  in  some  particulars,  would  unavoidably  modify  each 
other's  peculiar  tenets  ;  and  by  mutual  compromise  would 
meet  on  common  ground  in  respect  to  the  circumstantials 
of  their  religious  belief  These  little  communities,  scatter- 
ed among  the  mountains,  or  wherever  security  from  perse- 
cution might  draw  them,  would  thus  present  to  a  stranger, 
points  of  strong  resemblance,  which  would  secure  for  them 
a  common  name.  At  the  same  time,  there  would  be,  in 
reality,  considerable  dissimilarity  between  them,  produced 
by  the  preponderance  of  numbers  or  influence,  in  favor  of 
certain  distinctive  peculiarities,  in  given  cases,  which  would 
be  discovered  only  by  a  familiar  acquaintance  with  these 
several  dissenting  bodies. 

Thus,  when  certain  persons  were  discovered  by  the  in- 
quisitors who  agreed  in  leading  points,  such  as — their  regard 
for  the  Scriptures — their  abhorrence  of  the  idolatry  and 
tyranny  of  the  hierarchy — their  love  for  the  simple,  ex- 
perimental truths  of  the  gospel,  which  their  fathers  and 
themselves  had  learned  by  the  operations  of  the  Divine 
Spirit  upon  their  hearts  :— when,  I  say,  persons  were  found 
ao;reeing  with  each  other  in  their  opposition  to  Romanism 
on  these  points,  their  persecutors  would  naturally  conclude, 
that  they  were  one  and  tlie  same  sect, — however  remotely 
situated  from  each  other, — and  consequently,  they  would 
describe  them  as  the  same  sect,  with  some  points  of  vari- 
ance. In  this  way  we  may  account  for  the  different  de- 
scriptions of  the  Albigenses  and  Waldenses,  given  to  us  by 
their  persecutors.  Congregations  called  by  these  names, 
being  discovered  in  different  sections  of  country,  may 
have  differed  from  each  other  in  several  minor  points ; — 
yea,  they  may  have  been,  in  reality,  the  remains  of  differ- 
ent sects  ;  and  yet  they  were  so  much  alike  as  easily  to  be 


WALDENSES  AND  ALBIGENSES.  101 

confounded  together.  In  this  way  we  may  account  for  all 
the  different  faces  which  these  dissenters  from  Romanism 
are  said  to  have  presented  to  their  inquisitorial  visitors  and 
murderers. 

Some  of  these  sufferers  of  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth 
centuries  are  accused  of  Manichaean  errors.  So  were  the 
Paulicians  of  a  much  ealier  date.  These  latter,  we  know 
fled  to  the  mountains  of  Asia  for  protection  :  And  when 
they  migrated  to  Europe,  as  early  as  the  ninth  century, 
their  strong  hold  for  some  time,  was  around  the  eastern  ex- 
tremity of  that  range  of  mountains  which  proved  the  rest- 
ing place  of  multitudes  of  persecuted  Christians  in  later 
times.  This  range  begins  near  the  western  borders  of  the 
Black  sea,  runs  across  Turkey  in  Europe  towards  the  Gulf 
of  Venice,  and  along  the  entire  length  of  the  Gulf  through 
Austria,  to  the  borders  of  Switzerland  ;  and  forming  the 
boundary  line  between  that  country  and  Italy,  and  between 
the  latter  and  France,  it  then  turns  towards  the  south-east, 
and  runs  the  whole  length  of  Italy  towards  the  shores  of 
the  Mediterranean  sea.  From  the  point  where  these  moun- 
tains turn  south-eastward,  towards  the  centre  of  Italy j  the 
distance  is  not  great  to  another  range,  which  runs  down 
through  France,  in  a  south-west  direction  towards  Spain  ; 
and  forming  the  boundary  between  the  two  kingdoms,  runs 
along  near  the  northern  borders  of  Spain  towards  the  At- 
lantic, on  the  west. 

I  have  been  thus  particular  in  the  description  of  this 
range  of  mountains,  because  these  were  the  high  places  in 
which,  or  near  which  most  of  the  Waldenses  and  Alhigen- 
ses  were  ultimately  found. 

Now,  we  may  reasonably  suppose  that,  among  some  of 

these  m.ountain  recesses,  many  of  the  persecuted  Paulicians 

lived  ;  and  mingling  with  other  sufferers  for  conscience 
9* 


102  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

sake,  imparted  aPaulician  character  to  the  little  communi- 
ties, more  or  less  distinct  according  to  their  numbers  and 
weight  of  influence.  Wherever  their  numbers  or  influence 
was  superior  to  others,  with  whom  they  might  be  associated, 
their  peculiar  tenets  would  stand  forth  prominently. 

In  another  Alpine  recess,  the  disciples  of  Claude  of 
Turin  might  predominate  ;  they,  perhaps,  would  be  more 
inclined  to  maintain  the  Episcopal  order,  which  they  had 
associated  with  the  excellencies  of  their  godly  bishop  of 
Turin. 

Among  a  third  company  of  these  Christian  refugees,  the 
disciples  of  Berengarius  may  have  been  most  numerous 
or  influential :  these,  following  the  opinion  of  their  ad- 
mired master,  with  the  rejection  of  the  doctrine  of  the  real 
presence  of  the  identical  body  of  Christ  in  the  sacramental 
elements,  rejected  also  the  doctrine  of  infant  baptism  ;  their 
opinions  prevailing,  would  give  a  distinctive  character  to 
the  little  community  in  which  they  lived. 

In  another  community  the  Paterines  may  have  been 
most  numerous ;  this  sect  seem  to  have  entertained  views 
of  church- order  which  savored  of  what  we  now  call  Con- 
gregationalism.— As,  for  example,  that  "  A  Christian  church 
ought  to  consist  of  only  good  people" — that  "  a  Church 
had  no  power  to  frame  any  constitutions" — that  "the  sacra- 
ments and  orders  and  ceremonies  of  the  church  of  Rome 
were  futile,  expensive,  oppressive  and  wicked,"  etc.  This 
sect  seem  to  have  recognized  no  other  church  ofllicers  than 
such  as  are  consistent  with  the  Congregational  doctrine  upon 
this  subject.  Now,  wherever  these  worthy  people  pre- 
dominated, they  would  give  a  character  to  their  communi- 
ties somewhat  different  from  the  others. 

The  sects  to  which  reference  has  now  been  made  ap- 
peared, and  spread,  and  were  persecuted,  before  the  close 


WALDENSES  AND  ALBIGENSES.  103 

of  the  twelfth  century  ;  which  is  the  time  when  the  follow- 
ers of  Waldo,  and  the  Albigenses  were  persecuted  unto 
death. 

In  this  way,  then,  I  am  able  to  reconcile  much  of  the 
conflicting  testimony  respecting  these  interesting  Chris- 
tians whose  history  and  peculiarities  we  are  presently  to 
consider. 

1  have  most  unexpectedly  run  into  a  long  digression 
from  the  main  business  of  these  pages — the  exhibition  of 
the  history  of  Congregational  sentiments  upon  church  or- 
der and  government ;  I  hope  it  will  not  be  considered  a 
useless  one.  I  leave  my  little  theory  to  go  for  what  it  is 
worth.  A  better  acquaintance  with  church  history  might 
convince  me  of  the  futility  of  it ;  it  might  confirm  my 
belief  of  it. 

Dissenters  heticeen  the  seventh  and  twelfth  Centuries. 

The  reader  of  ecclesiastical  history  will  not  fail  to  re- 
mark, that,  from  the  rise  of  the  Paulicians  in  the  seventh 
century,  to  the  commencement  of  the  persecutions  against 
the  Waldenses  and  Albigenses,  in  the  twelfth  century, — 
there  is  a  continual  succession  of  dissenters  from  the  hie- 
rarchies of  Greece  and  Rome.  Many  of  these  dissenters 
were  devout  persons,  who  professed  a  reverential  regard 
for.  the  word  of  God,  and  who  kept  themselves  from  the 
prevailing  impurities  of  the  times  in  which  they  lived. 
These  persons  were  variously  styled — Paulicians,  Cathari, 
Puritani,  Paterini,  Publicani,  Bulgarians,  Josephists,  Petro- 
brusians,  Henricians,  and  more  lately,  Waldenses,  and 
Albigenses— names  derived  from  their  habits,  as  Cathari, 
from  /Ca^a^oi,  (katharoi)  pure  ones;  or  from  their  resi- 
dences, as   Bulgarians,  from  Bulgaria,  where    they  were 


104  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

supposed  to  have  originated  ;  or  from  distinguished  leaders 
among  them,  as  Henricians,  from  Henry. 

I  do  not  suppose  that  all  these  were  but  one  sect,  or  that 
they  perfectly  agreed  in  sentiment ;  still  they  were  all  dis- 
senters from  the  hierarchies  of  their  day,  and  many  of  them, 
if  not  most  of  them,  maintained  tenets  which  entitle  them 
to  honorable  notice  in  these  pages.  But,  as  the  materials 
for  a  sketch  of*  these  sects  are  very  imperfect,  I  select  the 
Waldenses  and  Albigenses,  as  embodying  the  prominent 
peculiarities  of  most  of  those  who  dissented  from  the  domi- 
nant parly,  in  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries.* 

Ecclesiastical  opinions  of  the  Waldenses  and  Albigenses. 

They  are  accused  of  "  a  contempt  of  ecclesiastical 
power  ;"t  or,  in  plain  English,  they  denied  the  right  of 
the  pope  and  the  bishops  to  lord  it  over  God's  heritage. — 
"  They  declare  themselves  to  be  the  apostles'  successors,  to 
have  apostolic  authority,  and  the  keys  of  binding  and  loos- 
ing.— They  hold  that  none  of  the  ordinances  of  the  church, 
which  have  been  introduced  since  Christ's  ascension,  ought 
to  be  observed,  as  being  of  no  value. — The  feasts,  fasts, 
orders,  blessings,  offices  of  the  church,  and  the  like,  they 
utterly  reject. — They  say,  the  bishops,  clergy,  and  other  re- 
ligious orders  are  no  better  than  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees, 
and  other  persecutors  of  the  apostles." 

*  Reinerius  Saccho,  an  Inquisitor,  who  was  familiar  with  the 
opinions  of  the  Waldenses,  accuses  them  of  ^'  mixing  the  erroneous 
doctrines  of  the  heretics  of  old  2cith  their  otcn  inveiitioiis." 

t  I  quote  the  words  of  R.  Saccho,  who  after  having  been  con- 
nected, in  different  ways,  with  the  Waldenses  for  seventeen  years, 
apostatized,  and  became  an  inquisitor,  and  a  bitter  persecutor  of 
of  these  good  men.  1  am  indebted  to  Mr.  Jones's  valuable  history 
of  the  Waldenses,  for  many  of  the  statements  in  this  article — 
London,  5th  ed.  8vo.  p.  520. 


WALDENSES  AND  ALBIGENSES.  105 

In  addition  lo  the  above  peculiarities,  Reinerius  accuses 
them  of  rejecting  the  Old  Testament,  "  that  they  may  not 
be  overthrown  by  it ;  pretending  that  upon  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  gospel  dispensation  all  old  things  were  to  be 
laid  aside." 

Such  is  the  testimony  of  this  inquisitor,  to  the  ecclesiasti- 
cal peculiarities  of  these  persecuted  Christians,  known  by 
various  local  names,  who  dwelt  in  and  around  the  Alps  and 
Pyrenees,  about  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century. 

I  have  omitted  the  larger  part  of  his  charges,  because 
they  have  no  relation  to  the  subject  in  hand.  1  may  say  in 
a  word,  however,  that  Reinerius  charges  upon  these  dis- 
senters very  little  that  any  Protestant  would  object  to,  as  a 
part  of  his  own  creed.* 

The  account  given  us  by  another  inquisitor,— who  says, 
"  he  had  exact  knowledge  of  the  Waldenses," — of  another 
branch  of  this  family,  which  appeared  in  Bohemia  in  the 
fourteenth  century,  will  afford  some  further  light  upon  their 
ecclesiastical  peculiarities.  He  tells  us,  that  they  maintained 
"  That  our  obedience  is  due  unto  God  alone,  and  not 
to  prelates  ;  which  they  found  on  Acts  4:  9. — That  none  in 
the  church  ought  to  be  greater  than  their  brethren  ;  accord- 
ing to  Matt.  20:  25. — That  no  man  ought  to  kneel  to  a 
priest,  because  the  angel  said  to  John  (Rev.  19:  10)  '  See 
thou  do  it  not.'— That  tithes  ought  not  to  be  given  to  the 
priests,  because  there  was  no  use  of  them  in  the  primitive 
church. — They  reject  all  the  titles  of  prelates,  as  pope, 
bishop,  etc. — They  condemn  all  ecclesiastical  offices,  and 
the  priviliges  and  immunities  of  the  church,  and  all  per- 
sons and  things  belonging  to  it ;  such  as  councils  and  sy- 

*  For  the  entire  account,  see  Allix's  Remarks  upon  the  churches 
of  PiediHont,  pp.  188—191.  Or  Jones's  Hist,  of  the  Chris.  Church, 
Vol.  II.  pp.  21  -27.  5tU  ed.  London. 


106  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

nods,  parochial  rights,  etc. —  They  hold  the  sacrament 
of  different  orders  of  the  clergy  to  be  of  no  use  ;  every 
good  layman  being  a  priest,  and  the  apostles  themselves 
being  all  laymen. — That  the  priestly  vestments,  altar,  orna- 
ments, pall,  corporals,  chalices,  patins,  and  other  vessels, 
are  of  no  efficacy.* — That  the  holidays  of  saints  are  to  be 
rejected  ;  and  that  there  is  no  merit  in  observing  the  fasts 
instituted  by  the  church. — Whatsoever  is  preached  without 
Scripture  proof,  they  account  no  better  than  fables. — They 
despise  the  decretals,  and  sayings,  and  expositions  of  holy 
men,  and  cleave  only  to  the  text  of  Scripture. — They  never 
read  the  liturgy. — They  contemn  all  approved  ecclesiasti- 
cal customs,  which  they  do  not  read  of  in  the  gospel ;  such 
as  the  observation  of  Candlemas,  Palm-Sunday,"  etc.t 

This  is  the  testimony  of  an  enemy;  and  yet,  it  is  by  no 
means  discreditable  to  those  of  whom  he  speaks.  His  testi- 
mony agrees,  in  nearly  every  particular,  with  that  of  Reine- 
rius,  upon  the  points  already  referred  to.  It  is,  however, 
worthy  of  remark,  that  this  last  inquisitor  clearly  refutes 
the  charge  of  his  brother  inquisitor,  respecting  their  rejec- 
tion of  the  Old  Testament.  He  mentions  several  opinions, 
which  he  says,  they  sustained  by  quotations  from  the  Old 
Testament.  This  shows  conclusively,  that  the  Bohemian 
Waldenses  did  not  reject  that  poriion  of  God's  word.  In- 
deed, this  author  tells  us  :  "  They  can  say  a  great  part  of 
the  Old  and  New  Testaments  by  heart.  " 

A  Catholic  bishop  of  the  fifteenth  century,  who  lived  in  the 
immediate  neighborhood  of  the  Waldenses  of  Piedmont — 

*  A  Pali,  was  the  consecrated  mantle  of  an  archbishop,  sent 
from  Rome.  A  Corporal,  was  the  sacred  cloth  used  to  cover  the 
elements,  etc.,  of  the  eucharist.  A  Chalice,  was  a  sacramental  ves- 
sel. A  Patin,  was  the  plate  which  contained  the  consecrated 
bread. 

t  Jones's  Hist.  Waldenses^  pp.  31 — 38- 


WALDENSES  AND  ALBIGENSES.  107 

Seisselius,  of  Turin — bears  almost  precisely  the  same  testi- 
mony to  the  peculiarities  of  the  Christians  of  those  vallies, 
as  that  which  we  have  just  heard  respecting  the  Bohemian 
Waldenses.  He  says  distinctly  :  "  They  receive  only  what 
is  written  in  the  Old  and  New  Testaments.* 

Thus  do  their  very  enemies  testify  to  the  Protestant  and 
Congregational  principles  and  doctrines  of  the  persecuted 
Waldenses. 

In  addition  to  the  testimony  of  the  enemies  of  the  Wal- 
denses, we  have  two  or  three  of  their  ancient  Confessions 
of  Faith  ;  which  have  been  preserved  for  centuries,  among 
these  mountain  Christians.  In  one  of  them,  the  substance 
of  which  is  given  by  the  Magdeburg  Centuriators,  they 
assert.  That 

1.  "  In  articles  of  faith,  the  authority  of  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures is  the  highest ;  and  for  that  reason  it  is  the  standard 
of  judging  ;  so  that  whatsoever  doth  not  agree  with  the 
word  of  God,  is  deservedly  to  be  rejected  and  avoided. 

2.  The  decrees  of  fathers  and  councils  are  [only]  so  far 
to  be  approved  as  they  agree  with  the  word  of  God. 

3.  The  reading  and  knowledge  of  the  Holy  Scriptures, 
is  open  to,  and  is  necessary  for  all  men, — the  laity  as  well 
as  the  clergy ;  and  moreover,  the  writings  of  the  prophets 
and  apostles  are  to  be  read  rather  than  the  comments  of 
men. 

4.  The  sacraments  of  the  church  of  Christ  are  two,  bap- 
tism and  the  Lord's  supper ;  and  in  the  latter,  Christ  has 
instituted  the  receiving  in  both  kinds,  both  for  priests  and 
people. 

5.  Masses  are  impious ;  and  it  is  madness  to  say  masses 
for  the  dead. 

6.  Purgatory  is  the  invention  of  men  ;  for  they  who  be- 

*  Jones,  pp.  38 — 45. 


108  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

lieve,  go  into  eternal  life  ;  they  who  believe  not,  into  eter- 
nal damnation. 

7.  The  invoking  and  worshipping  of  dead  saints  is  idolatry. 

8.  The  church  of  Rome  is  the  Whore  of  Babylon. 

9.  We  must  not  obey  the  pope  and  bishops,  because 
ihey  are  the  wolves  of  the  church  of  Christ. 

10.  The  pope  hath  not  the  primacy  over  all  the  churches 
of  Christ ;  neither  hath  he  the  power  of  both  swords. 

11.  That  is  the  church  of  Christ,  which  hears  the  pure 
doctrine  of  Christ,  and  observes  the  ordinances  instituted 
by  him,  in  whatsoever  place  it  exists. 

12.  Vows  of  celibacy  are  the  inventions  of  men,  and  pro- 
ductive of  uncleanness. 

13.  So  many  orders  [of  the  clergy,  are]  so  many  marks 
of  the  beast. 

14.  Monkery  is  a  filthy  carcase. 

15.  So  many  superstitious  dedications  of  churches,  com- 
memorations of  the  dead,  benedictions  of  creatures,  pil- 
grimages, so  many  forced  fastings,  so  many  superfluous 
festivals,  those  perpetual  bellowings  [alluding  to  the  prac- 
tice of  chanting]  and  the  observations  of  various  other  cer- 
emonies, manifestly  obstructing  the  teaching  and  learning 
of  the  word,  are  diabolical  inventions. 

16.  The  marriage  of  priests  is  both  lawful  and  necessa- 
ry."* 

Such  appears  to  have  been  the  faith  of  the  Waldenses, 
in  the  twelfth  century.  I  have  given  the  Centuriator's 
abridgement  entire,  because  it  contains  the  substance  of 
the  other  Waldensian  creeds  which  have  come  down  to  us  ; 
and  presents  a  correct  view  of  these  Alpine  Christians. 

These  sentiments — if  we  may  believe  one  who  had  apos- 
tatized from  the  faith  and  became  its  bitter  persecutor  (Rei- 


*  Jones,  pp.  47 — 49. 


WAbDENSES  AND  ALBlGENSES.  l09 

nefiLis  Sacclio) — were  embraced  by  vast  multitudes  of  per- 
sons before  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century  ;  for,  says 
lie,  "  There  is  scarcely  a  country  to  be  found  in  which  this 
heresy  is  not  planted."  Their  doctrines  were  propagated 
with  great  assiduity  by  all  who  embraced  them.  Reinerius 
tells  us  that  one  method  adopted  by  them  was,  to  travel  up 
and  down  the  country  as  pedlers  of  jewelry,  and  trinkets, 
and  needle-work,  and  handkerchiefs.  Having  gained  ac- 
cess to  a  family,  and  disposed  of  some  of  their  wares,  they 
would  tell  the  inmates  of  more  valuable  matters  ;  they 
would  then  repeat  portions  of  the  word  of  God,  and  inform 
the  listening  family  that  by  this  "  he  communicates  his  mind 
to  men,  and  inflames  their  hearts  with  love  to  him." 

Not  to  weary  the  reader  with  further  particulars,  of  what 
we  have  learned  respecting  the  Waldenses  and  Albigenses, 
this  is  the  sum  :  Betu'cen  the  ninth  and  thirteenth  centuries 
there  appeared  in  different  parts  of  Europe,  numerous  bo- 
dies of  dissenters  from  the  Catholic  hierarchy,  who,  though 
known  by  various  names,  and  differing  in  minor  particulars, 
yet  agreed  pretty  generally  in  the  following  points  :  1.  That 
the  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments  are  an  in- 
fallible and  sufficient  guide  to  the  church  of  Christ ;  and 
that  men  are  under  no  obligations  to  believe  or  practice,  as 
a  religious  duty,  anything  not  enjoined  by  the  Scriptures. 
2.  That  these  teach,  that  the  church  of  Christ  should  con^ 
sist  of  such  only  as  hear  and  obey  the  truth.  3.  That 
Christ  has  given  his  church  no  authority  to  make  laws  for 
the  government  of  his  people,  but  simply  requires  them  to 
administer  such  as  he  has  given  in  his  word.  4.  That  the 
whole  hierarchal  system  of  church  government  then  exist- 
ing in  the  world,  was  anti-Christian  ;  since  the  Scriptures 
nowhere  recognized  the  different  orders  of  the  clergy,  or 
the  right  of  the  pope,  and  his  bishops,  and  priests,  and  other 
10 


1  10  HISTORY  OF  COr?GREGATJONALISBT. 

officers  to  rule  over  the  people  of  God.  5.  They  seem  to 
have  recognized  no  other  church  officers  but  bishops  or 
elders,  and  deacons.*  6.  These  appear  to  have  been  elec- 
ted by  the  brethren  ;t  and  their  bishops,  at  least,  ordained 
by  the  imposition  of  the  hands  of  others  in  office. I  7. 
Their  churches  were  composed  of  persons  "  previously  con- 
fessing and  declaring  [their]  faith  and  change  of  life." 

*  I  have  already  noticed  Mr.  Waddington's  assertion — that  they 
recognized  three  orders  in  the  clergy.  I  will  not  deny  that  a  com' 
munity  of" these  good  men  maij  have  been  found,  who  retained  this 
innovation  upon  apostolical  simplicity  ;  but  I  have  not  yet  met 
Avith  any  evidence  of  it,  and  their  enemies  seem  distinctly  to  as- 
sent the  contrary  ;  and  their  own  writers  declare  that,  "  Cliey  ad- 
mit of  no  other  degrees  than  bishops  and  deacons.''  This  is  assert- 
ed by  Vignaux,  who,  for  forty  years,  was  pastor  of  one  of  the  Wal- 
densian  churches  in  the  vallies  of  Piedmont. — See  Jones,  pp.  ^4, 
85,  149. 

Dr.  Clarke,  in  his  Martyrology,  says,  that  among  the  opinions 
for  which  the  Waldenses  were  *•  so  declaimed  against  and  cruelly 
persecuted  by  the  Romanists,  were  these  :  "  That  there  is  no  dif- 
ference between  a  bishop  and  a  minister. — That  it  is  not  tlie  dig- 
nity, but  deserts  of  a  presbyter,  that  makes  him  a  better  man." — 
Chap.  '22,  folio  ed. 

Dr.  Miller  thinks  there  is  evidence  of  their  having  the  office  of 
ruling  elder  among  them.  This,  however,  would  not  necessarily 
affect  the  assertion  in  the  text. 

t  An  ancient  manuscript  preserved  among  the  Waldenses,  rela- 
ting to  ecclesiastical  discipline,  claijns  for  the  people,  the  right  to 
choose  their  own  church  officers,  as  a  privilege  Avhich  God  has 
conferred  upon  his  people — "  According  to  the  diversity  of  the 
vork,  in  the  unity  of  Christ,  and  comformably  to  the  apostolic  ex- 
ample,— '  For  this  cause  left  I  thee  in  Crete,  that  thou  shouldest 
set  in  order  the  things  that  are  wanting,  and  ordain  elders  in  every 
city,  as  I  had  appointed.'  "  And  these  men,  "  having  good  testi- 
monials and  being  well  approved  of,  are  received  with  imposition 
of  hands." — Gilly's  VValdensian  Researches,  p.  143,  quoted  by  Le 
Bas.    Introduction  to  the  Life  of  Wickliffe,  p.  54. 

;  Jones,  p.  G9. 


WALDENSES  AND  ALBIGENSES.  Ill 

These  were  the  prominent  principles  and  doctrines  of 
the  Waldenses  and  Albigenses,  which  related  to  the  order, 
and  government,  and  worship  of  their  churches  ;  and  which 
seem  to  authorize  an  enrohnent  of  their  names  among  the 
ecclesiastical  ancestors  of  modern  Congregationalists. 

These  sentiments,  connected  with  a  faith  and  morality 
equally  pure  and  scriptural,  spread  over  almost  all  parts  of 
the  continent  of  Europe  ;*  and  found  their  way  even  into 
England  ;t  preparing  the  ground,  if  not  sowing  the  seeds 
for  the  harvest  of  later  days. 

It  was  not  to  be  expected  that  these  scriptural  Christians 
should  escape  the  hand  of  persecution.  The  story  of  their 
sufferings  has  been  so  often  told,  and  may  be  so  easily 
known  to  all  who  have  access  to  even  a  good  Sabbath 
School  library,  that  I  need  not  dwell  upon  particulars.  The 
decrees  of  councils,  the  efforts  of  bishops,  the  bulls  of 
popes,|  the  rack  and  fires  of  the  Inquisition,  the  armies  of 
the  crusaders  cheered  on  with  the  war  cry — "  Persecute 

*  "  Cesarius  saith  :  That  this  heresy  so  increased,  that  in  a  short 
time  it  infected — usque  ad  viilte  civitates — a  thousand  cities."—' 
Clarke,  p.  37. 

t  Clarke  tells  us  that,  '^  Anno  Christi,  1160,  some  of  them  came 
into  England,  and  at  Oxford  were  punished  in  the  most  barbarous 
and  cruel  manner." — Marty rology,  folio,  p.  36. 

X  Pope  Alexander  111.  (A.  U.  1160—1163)  doomed  these  unfortu- 
nate Christians  to  utter  extirpation  :  ''  Giving  them  over  to  Satan  j 
interdicting  them  all  communion  and  society  with  others;  *  *  con- 
fiscating their  goods,  disinheriting  their  heirs;  *  *  ordering  their 
houses  to  be  razed  to  the  ground,  and  their  lands  to  be  given  to 
others  ;  *  *  commanding  kings,  princes,  magistrates,  councils, 
and  people,  to  make  an  exact  inquisition,  to  shut  the  gates,  to  ring 
the  toll-bell;  to  arm  themselves,  to  apprehend,  kill,  or  use  any 
other  violence  to  them  ;  giving  their  accusers  a  third  part  of  their 
estates;  condemning  all  favorers  to  the  same  punishment." — ■ 
Clarke's  Martyrology,  Chap.  22. 


112  HISTORY  OF  CGNGKEGATIONALISEi. 

them  with  a  strong  hand  /"* — swept  hundreds  of  thousands 
of  these  excellent  people  and  their  defenders,  from  the 
plains  and  vallies  of  Europe,  and  filled  the  very  caves  of 
the  mountains  with  their  lifeless  bodies.  "  Yet  notwith- 
standing all  the  cruelties  used  against  them,  their  enemies 
could  never  prevail  to  a  total  exth'pation  of  them,  but  they 
still  lay  hid  like  sparkles  under  the  ashes,  desiring  and  long- 
ing to  see  that,  which  now  through  God's  grace,  their  pos- 
terity do  enjoy,  viz. :  The  liberty  to  call  upon  God  in  purity 
of  conscience,  whhout  being  enforced  to  any  superstition 
and  idolatry  ;  and  so  instructing  their  children  in  the  ser- 
vice of  God,  the  Lord  was  pleased  to  preserve  a  church 
amongst  them,  in  the  midst  of  the  Romish  corruptions,  as 
a  diamond  in  a  dunghill,  as  wheat  amongst  chatf,  as  gold 
in  the  fire  ;  till  it  pleased  God  to  disperse  the  gospel  in  a 
more  general  and  public  way,  by  the  ministry  of  Luther, 
end  his  associates  and  fellow-laborers  in  the  Lord  :  At 
which  time,  these  Albigenses  received  with  greediness  the 
doctrine  of  the  gospel,  and  so  became  more  eminent  in 
their  profession  of  piety  than  they  were  formerly."t 

The  beautiful  and  well  known  sonnet  of  Milton,  written 
between  1655 — 1658,  and  worthy  alike  of  the  poet  and  the 
Christian,  shall  close  my  account  of  the  Waldenses  and  Al- 
bigenses. 

"  On  the  late  Massacre  in  Piedmont?^ 

"  Avenge,  O  Lord,  thy  slaughtered  saints,  whose  bones 
Lie  scattered  on  the  Alpine  mountains  cold  ; 
Even  them  who  kept  thy  truth  so  pure  of  old, 
When  all  our  flxthers  worship'd  stocks  and  stones, 

*  The  words  of  pope  Innocent  III.  in  his  exhortation  to  the  cru- 
saders against  the  Albigenses. 

i  Clarke's  Martyrology,  Chap.  25. 


GREAT  BRITAIN. 

Forget  not ;  in  thy  book  record  their  groans 
Who  were  thy  sheep,  and  in  their  ancient  fold 
Slain  by  the  bloody  Piedmontese,  that  roU'd 
Mother  with  infant  down  the  rocks.*     Their  moans 
The  vales  redoubled  to  the  hills,  and  they 
To  heaven.     Their  martyr'd  blood  and  ashes  sow 
O'er  all  the  Italian  fields  where  still  doth  sway 
The  tripled  tyrant ;  that  from  these  may  grow 
A  hundred  fold,  who,  having  learn'd  thy  way, 
Early  may  fly  the  Babylonian  woe." 


113 


CHAPTER  VI. 


HISTORICAL  VIEW  OF  GREAT  BRITAIN,  B.  C.  55,  TO  A.  D.   1350. 

Britain,  is  a  n-ame  dear  to  every  Congregationalist.  It 
was  upon  the  soil  of  Britain  that  the  principles  which  he 
loves  were  first  fully  restored  to  the  Church  of  Christ,  after 
an  oblivion  of  a  thousand  years.  It  was  in  this  island,  re- 
garded by  the  ancients  as  "  the  ends  of  the  earth,"  that 
those  great  and  good  men  arose,  who  shone  as  lights  in  the 
world  ;  and  became  the  guides  of  inquiring  thousands,  to 
the  simple  and  apostolic  doctrines  respecting  the  faith,  and 
order,  and  worship  of  the  Christian  Church. 

As  Great  Britain  is  to  be  the  field  of  our  investigation  for 
a  considerable  time,  and  as  our  whole  denominational  his- 

*  "  A  mother  was  hurled  down  a  mighty  rock,  with  a  little  in- 
fant in  her  arms  ;  and  three  days  after  was  found  dead,  with  the 
little  child  alive,  but  last  clasped  between  the  arms  of  the  dead 
mother,  which  were  cold  and  stiff,  insomuch  that  those  who  found 
them  had  much  ado  to  get  the  young  child  out." — Moreland's  Hiet. 
of  the  Chhs.  of  Piedmont,  quoted  by  Jones,  Vol.  II.  p.  354. 

10* 


114  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM* 

tory  is  intimately  associated  with  the  church  history  of  Bri- 
tain, it  will  not  be  deemed  an  inappropriate  introduction  to 
this  field,  to  present  a  brief  outline  of  her  religious  history, 
from  the  invasion  of  Julius  Caesar  to  the  days  of  John 
Wickliffe. 

The  most  ancient  names  of  this  island  were  Briton,  AI- 
hion,  or  Alhin,  Its  very  early  history  contains  so  much 
that  is  fabulous,  that  it  is  difficult  to  distinguish  between 
truth  and  falshood.  Hume  rejects  "  all  traditions,  or  rather 
tales,  concerning  the  more  early  history  of  Britain  ;"  and 
be(>-ins  his  history  with  the  invasion  of  Julius  Caesar.  Sharon 
Turner,  on  the  contrary,  "  insists,  that  sufficient  attention 
has  not  been  paid  to  them  by  his  predecessors."  Milton 
seems  to  have  regarded  these  ancient  fables  and  traditions 
as  containing  "  footsteps  and  reliques"  worth  noticing.  It 
seems  most  probable,  that  the  island  was  known  to  the 
Phoenicians,  those  ancient  navigators,  some  centuries  be- 
fore the  Roman  invasion. 

In  the  year  55  or  56  before  Christ,  Julius  Caesar,  having 
overrun  Gaul  with  his  victorious  legions,  turned  his  eyes  to- 
wards the  neighboring  island  of  Briton.  Influenced,  pro- 
bably, more  by  love  of  conquest  than  anything  else,  he  effec- 
ted a  landing  on  the  island,  and  made  some  attempts  to- 
wards conquering  the  ferocious  inhabitants.  But,  so  deter- 
mined was  their  resistance,  that  the  Roman  conqueror 
seems  at  first  to  have  done  little  else  than  to  establish  a 
temporary  and  precarious  footing  upon  their  shores ;  and 
finally,  but  half  conquered  the  barbarous  people.  Th€  com- 
plete conquest  of  Briton  was  not  accomplished  until  nearly 
a  century  and  a  half  after  the  attempt  of  Caesar,  by  the 
celebrated  Cneius  Julius  Agricola,  A.  D.  84.  And  this,  ac- 
cording to  Gibbon  :  "  Afier  a  war  of  about  forty  years." 
The  inhabitants  of  this  island,  when   visited  by  the  Ro- 


GREAT    BRITAIN.  115 

mans,  appear  to  have  consisted  of  two  races ;  the  Belgic, 
inhabiting  the  south-eastern  part,  and  the  Celtic,  who  had 
been  driven  into  the  interior.  The  former  of  these,  had 
made  so  much  progress  toward  civilization  as  to  have  be- 
come, to  some  extent,  an  agricultural  people.  The  latter 
were  more  fierce,  barbarous,  and  ferocious  ;  dwelling  in 
temporary  huts  in  the  woods,  clad  in  skins,  if  covered 
at  all,  and  depending  chiefly  upon  their  flocks  and  the  wild 
game  of  the  forests  for  their  living.  They  were  broken  up 
into  numerous  independent  tribes,  without  any  common 
bond  of  union  among  themselves,  except  what  their  com- 
mon faith  furnished. 


Druidism  of  the  Britons. 

Their  religion  was  of  the  most  despotic  character.  Their 
priests,  who  were  called  Druids.,  not  only  superintended 
the  offering  of  sacrifices — which,  on  great  occasions  were 
sometimes  human — but  they  engrossed  the  entire  business 
of  instructing  the  youth  ;  they  were  the  physicians  of  the 
island  ;  the  arbiters  in  all  disputes  between  states,  as 
well  as  individuals  ;  no  public  business  could  be  transacted 
without  their  authority  ;  they  claimed  judicial  power,  in 
criminal,  as  well  as  civil  cases  ;  were  exempt  from  the  bur- 
dens of  war  and  taxation — in  a  word,  were  the  sovereigns 
of  the  Britons.  To  enforce  their  decrees,  the  druids  had 
the  power  to  excommunicate  any  offender  from  public  wor- 
ship, to  debar  him  from  any  intercourse  with  his  fellow- 
citizens  in  any  of  the  affairs  of  life,  to  refuse  him  protection 
from  violence  of  any  kind,  and  thus  to  render  life  an  insup- 
portable burden  ;  or,  they  could  absolve  one  from  all  guilt, 
and  thus  free  him  from  all  punishment.  At  the  head  of 
these  mighty  priests  was  an  Arch-Druid,  who  was  their 


116  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

sovereign,  and  ruled  them  as  absolutely  as  they  ruled  the 
nation. 

Their  worship  was  in  the  open  air ;  and  usually,  if  not 
uniformly,  under  the  shade  of  the  oak ;  which  they  are 
said  to  have  worshipped  as  the  symbol  of  the  Supreme  Be- 
ing himself,  or  the  place  of  his  special  residence.  From 
these  circumstances,  the  priests  and  their  worship  are  sup- 
posed, by  some  antiquaries,  to  have  derived  their  name — 
Druids — Druidism,  from  dgvg  (druse)  an  oak.  They  are 
supposed  to  have  believed  in  the  immortality  of  the  soul, 
and  its  transmigration  after  death.  They  used  no  books 
in  their  instructions.  All  their  religious  and  scientific 
knowledge  ;  all  that  they  taught  of  history,  or  of  the  deeds 
of  their  ancestors,  was  oral,  and  much  of  it  in  verse  :  these 
their  pupils  were  required  to  commit  to  memory,  but  were 
forbidden  to  write  down. 

The  better  to  accomplish  their  purposes,  the  Druids  car- 
ried their  pupils  into  distant  and  desolate  regions,  and  there 
instructed  them,  from  day  to  day,  in  lonely  caves.  Their 
course  of  instruction  seems  not  to  have  been  finished  until 
24,000  verses,  containing  divers  kinds  of  knowledge,  were 
committed  to  memory. 

Never  were  a  people  so  completely  controlled  and  en- 
slaved by  their  religious  rites,  and  religious  teachers,  as 
were  the  ancient  Britons.  After  the  conquest  of  the  island, 
the  Romans,  finding  it  impossible  to  govern  the  people 
while  their  religious  superstitions  were  tolerated,  were  com- 
pelled— contrary  to  their  usual  policy — to  abolish  Druidism 
by  penal  statutes. 

Briton  a  Roman  Province,  A.  D.  84 — 448. 

It  was  among  this  people,  that  Roman  colonies  were  set- 
tled, Roman  laws,  and  manners,  and  customs,  and  learning, 


GREAT   BRITAIN.  117 

were  introduced  ; — and  above  all,  that  religion^  which  ulti- 
mately became  ihe  faith  of  the  Romans. 

The  precise  time  when  Christianity  was  introduced  into 
this  island  is  uncertain.  It  is  equally  doubtful  by  whom. 
It  seems  quite  probable  that  it  entered  from  Gaul  ;  and  not 
later  than  the  third  century.  It  may  have  been  received 
at  an  earlier  period — even  from  apostolic  lips.  It  is  well 
established  that  there  were  three  British  bishops  at  the  coun- 
cil of  Aries  in  the  year  314;  an  indication  that  Christianity 
had  made  considerable  progress  in  the  island  at  that  time. 

The  Romans,  after  being  masters  of  Briton  for  about  four 
centuries,  were  obliged  to  abandon  this  province  to  the  care 
of  its  own  inhabitants,  somewhere  about  the  middle  of  the 
fifth  century.*  In  the  mean  time,  considerable  progress  in 
civilization  had  been  made.  Nearly  one  hundred  chies  and 
towns  had  arisen  ;f  and  the  arts  and  learning  of  the  Ro- 
mans had  made  some  progress  among  these  provincials. 

Intermarriages,  too,  had  softened  the  hauteur  of  the  con- 
querors, and  the  prejudice  of  the  conquered. 

Christianity  too,  had  exerted  some  influence  in  reforming 
the  manners,  if  not  in  changing  the  hearts  of  the  Britons. 
Gibbon  supposes  that,  when  the  Roman  emperor  ceased  to 
exercise  sovereignty  over  the  island,  (about  A.  D.  450,) 
"  the  British  church  might  be  composed  of  thirty  or  forty 
bishops,  with  an    adequate   proportion  of  the  inferior  cler- 

*  Authorities  vary.  Hume  places  it  A.  D.  448.  The  Edin. 
Encyclopaedia  A.  D.  421.  Gibbon  seems  to  carry  it  up  to  A.  D. 
409.  This  difference  is  occasioned  chiefly  by  the  question,  whether 
the  first  withdrawal  of  the  Roman  legions  from  Briton,  was  an 
abandonment  of  the  island. 

t  Gibbon  says  :  "  Ninety-two  considerable  towns  had  arisen  *  * 
and  among  them,  thirty-three  were  distinguished  above  the  rest, 
by  their  superior  privileges  and  importance." — Vol.  11.  p.  279, 
Otljer  writers  make  the  number  somewhat  less. 


118  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

gy."*  And  from  the  circumstance  that  they  were  rather 
distinguished  for  their  poverty  tlian  their  wealth,  we  may 
infer,  that  they  retained  a  respectable  character  for  chris- 
tian activity  and  piety.t 

Such,  substantially,  appears  to  have  been  the  state  of 
Briton  when  the  weakness,  and  approaching  dissolution  of 
the  Roman  empire,  compelled  the  imperial  government  to 
withdraw  the  legions,  which  had  heretofore  been  the  prin- 
cipal defence  of  the  island. 

Invasion  of  the  Scots  and  Picts. 

Immediately  on  the  removal  of  these  troops,  the  Scots 
and  Picts — the  highlanders  and  lowlanders  of  Scotland — 
broke  in  upon  the  Britons  "  like  hungry  wolves  into  a  sheep- 
fold."!  The  northern  walls,  which  the  Roman  generals 
had  erected  and  fortified  for  the  protection  of  the  provincial 
islanders,  presented  but  a  feeble  barrier  to  the  inroads  of 
these  fierce  barbarians.    They  desolated  with  fire  and  sword 

*  Vol.11.  Chap.  31.  p.  28U.  See  also,  Bingham's  Ecc.  An- 
tiquities, Vol.  1.  B.  IX.  Chap.  6.  p.  394. 

t  Of  three  British  bishops  who  attended  the  council  of  Ri- 
mini, A.  D.  359,  it  is  said:  '-lam  pauperes  fuisse  ut  nihil  habe- 
rent,"  i.  e.  they  were  so  poor  that  they  had  absolutely  nothing  : — 
See  Gibbon,  as  above.  If  tliey  were  proportionally  poor  in  spirit, 
they  were,  doubtless,  laborious  and  faithful  ministers.  Of  this, 
however,  there  is  so  much  room  for  doubt,  as  to  forbid  us  to  speak 
confidently. 

+  Gildas,  quoted  in  the  London  Encyclopaedia,  Art.  Britain. 
Gildas  was  a  monk,  born  in  Wales,  A.  D.  511.  He  wrote  a  his- 
tory of  Britain,  valuable  for  its  antiquity,  and  the  information 
which  it  contains  of  his  own  times.  "  He  is  the  only  British  au- 
thor of  the  sixth  century  whose  works  are  printed. — Lon.  Ency. 
Art.  GiHas, 


GREAT    BRITAIN.  llD 

considerable  portions  of  the  island  ;  they  took  possession  of 
the  frontier  towns  ;  and  finally  overran  the  country.  The 
inhabitants  were  massacred,  driven  out,  or  conquered.  Af- 
ter a  season  of  oppression,  the  Briiains  rose  upon  their  con- 
querors ;  cut  in  pieces  great  numbers  of  them,  and  drove 
back  the  remainder  into  Scotland.  A  short  season  of  peace 
and  prosperity  followed — and,  if  we  may  credit  Gildas 
of  "  corruption  of  manners  among  all  ranks,"  not  excepting 
the  clergy  themselves.  The  good  monk  complains  bitterly, 
that  those  "  who  should  have  reclaimed  the  laity  by  their 
example,  proved  the  ringleaders  in  every  vice  ;  being  ad- 
dicted to  drunkenness,  contention,  envy,"  etc.  The  false 
security,  which  this  state  of  things  implies,  was  soon  broken 
up  by  the  return  of  the  Scots  and  Picts  in  greater  numbers 
than  before  ;  and  the  evils  which  they  inflicted  on  this  un- 
happy people,  were  proportionally  terrible. 

While  suffering  the  ravages  of  these  barbarians,  the  mis- 
erable Britons  sought  an  alliance  with  the  Saxons.  This 
seems  to  have  been  the  common  name  of  several  tribes  of 
i^orthmen,  who  inhabited  the  northern  parts  of  Germany^ 
along  the  Baltic  Sea,  and  the  eastern  shores  of  the  North 
Sea.  Their  inhospitable  climate,  the  barrenness  of  the 
soil,  and  their  maritime  situation,  had  enticed  them  into 
the  roving  habits  and  lawless  lives  of  freebooters.  They 
were  the  pirates  of  Europe.  In  their  light  boats,  framed  of 
wicker,  and  covered  with  hides,  they  coasted  along  the 
shores  of  the  sea,  plundering  the  coasts,  or  ascending  rivers 
and  creeks,  as  the  hope  of  gain  directed.  In  this  way,  they 
acquired  a  predatory  acquaintance  with  ancient  Gaul ;  and 
ultimately  found  their  way  across  the  narrow  strait  which 
separated  Gaul  from  Briton. 

It  was,  probably,  the  experience  of  the  hardihood  and 
bravery  of  the  Saxons,  in  their  piratical  attacks  upon  the 


120  HISTORY  OT  CONGREGATIDiNALlSM. 

island  coast,  which  led  the  suffering  Britons  to  propose  an 
alliance  with  them,  in  order  to  expel  the  barbarous  Scots 
and  Picts.  The  Saxon  leaders  readilj^  accepted  the  pro- 
posed alliance.  They  furnished  a  band  of  a  thousand  six 
hundred  warriors,  who,  united  with  the  British  forces^ 
readily  drove  the  tribes  of  Scotland  to  their  native  fast- 
nesses. 

Saxon  Conquest,  A.  D,  450—600. 

Scarcely  had  the  unsuspecting  Britons  time  to  rejoice 
over  the  success  of  their  alliance,  when  they  began  to  find^ 
to  their  amazement,  that  they  had  introduced  into  their 
island  a  more  formidable  enemy  than  had  just  been  driven 
out.  The  Saxon  chiefs,  perceiving  the  weakness  and  un- 
warlike  character  of  their  allies,  the  fruitful  character  of 
their  soil,  and  the  wealth  of  the  island,  immediately  set 
their  hearts  upon  the  conquest  of  the  country.  Establish- 
ing themselves  upon  the  small  and  fertile  island  of  Thanet, 
on  the  south-western  coast  of  Briton,  they  sent  to  their  Ger- 
man friends  an  account  of  the  country  to  which  they  had 
been  introduced  ;  and  communicated  their  purposes  of  con* 
quest.  The  hardy,  piratical  fishermen  of  the  North  Sea 
and  the  Baltic,  eagerly  embraced  the  opportunity  of  chang- 
m^  their  abode,  and  improving  their  condition.  Under 
various  pretences  successive  thousands  of  the  Saxons  were 
introduced  to  the  adjacent  islands  and  to  the  mainland  of  Bri- 
ton. Finding,  at  length,  their  numbers  sufficient,  the  Saxon 
leaders  sought  occasion  for  quarrelling  with  the  Britons  ; 
threw  off  the  mask  of  friendship,  and  forming  an  alliance 
with  the  very  men  whom  they  had  driven  out  of  the  coun- 
try— the  Scots  and  Picts — commenced  a  war  of  conquest 
or   extermination   upon  the   unfortunate   islanders.     Vast 


tJREAT  BRITAIN,  121 

multitudes  of  them  were  slaughtered  ;  their  towns  ari<J  cities 
were  sacked  and  burned  ;  and  lar^  tracts  of  country  were 
made  desolate.  Some  of  the  inhabitants  fled  across  the 
strait  to  Holland  ;  some  to  Gaul.  Others  took  refuge  in 
the  woods  and  mountains  of  the  interior.  The  Britons 
were  at  length  roused  by  the  desperation  of  their  circum- 
stances, and  fought  heroically  for  their  native  land.  Rivers 
of  blood  enriched  the  devoted  soil.  Various  success  at- 
tended the  conflicting  armies  ;  yet  the  invaders,  constantly 
augmented  by  the  swarms  from  their  northern  hives,  grad- 
ually encroached  upon  the  miserable  islanders,  until  the 
whole  of  Briton  became  the  prey  of  the  Saxon  spoilers. 
Thus,  after  a  most  terrible  and  desolating  contest  of 
nearly  150  years,  (i.  e.  from  about  A.  D.  459  to  A.  D, 
600),  the  Saxon  heptarchy,  or  seven  kingdoms,  were  es- 
tablished on  the  territory  which  is  now  known  as  England. 
The  original  inhabitants  were  almost  totally  extirpated.  A 
few  of  the  most  daring  and  successful  resistants  were 
driven  back  into  the  mountains  of  Cornwall  and  Wales ; 
hence  the  name — Wales  and  Welshmen,  from  the  Saxon 
tongue,  denoting  a  strange  country,  or  a  stranger.  Among 
the  mountains  of  Wales,  the  ancient  Britons  maintained 
their  independence  for  more  than  six  centuries. 

The  Saxon  invasion  and  conquest  swept  away  from  the 
island  all  traces  of  former  civilization  and  Christianity, 
and  covered  this  land,  a  second  time,  with  the  darkne.ss  of 
the  harshest  paganism.  Woden  or  Odin^  was  the  supreme 
god  of  the  Saxons ;  from  whom  several  of  the  heptarchy 
princes  were  supposed  to  have  descended.  He  was  a  god 
of  war — he  slaughtered  thousands  at  a  blow.  In  his  pal- 
ace of  Valhalla,  he  received  to  supreme  felicity  the  souls 
of  those  who  fell  in  battle  bravely  fighting.  Their  days 
were  spent  in  employments  most  congenial  to  their  tastes 
11 


122  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

— "  in  mimic  hunting  matches,  or  imaginary  combats." 
Their  nights  were  devoted  lo  feasting  upon  delicious  viands, 
served  by  virgins  of  surpassing  beauty,  and  never  fading 
charms  ;  and  in  regaling  themselves  with  mead,  drunk 
from  the  skulls  of  their  slaughtered  enemies.* 

A  conquest  made  by  the  worshippers  of  such  a  god,  and 
the  expectants  of  such  pleasures,  and  under  the  immediate 
direction  of  men  who  claimed  affinity  to  Woden  himself — 
must,  of  necessity,  have  been  destructive  of  everything  civi- 
lizing or  humanizing. 

Christianity  introduced  among  the  Saxons,  about  A.  D.  596. 

Gregory  the  Great  was  the  father  of  the  Anglo-Saxonf 
church.  That  same  Gregory  who  is  said  to  have  destroy- 
ed the  monuments  of  ancient  Roman  greatness,  lest  the 
visitors  of  Rome  should  give  more  attention  to  those  works 
of  art,  than  to  the  pursuits  of  religion  ;  and  who  is  infa- 
mous among  the  lovers  of  classical  literature,  for  having 
burned  numerous  ancient  manuscripts,  among  which  were 
several  of  Livy,  lest  the  clergy  should  be  more  instructed 
in  the  polished  productions  of  pagan  Rome,  than  in  the 
monkish  learning  of  papal  Rome.  The  same,  who  en- 
couraged the  use  of  pictures  and  images  in  the  churches, 
— though  he  condemned  the  worship  of  them — as  needful 
helps  to  the  instruction  and  edification  of  the  ignorant  popu- 
lace. Such  was  the  fountain  head  from  which  flowed  the 
Christianity  of  the  Saxon  church  ;  not,  that  Gregory  him- 


*  See  Art.  Mythology,  in  London  Encyc. — also,  Hume,  Vol.  I. 
Chap.  1.  and  Russell's  Modern  Europe,  .l>etter  xi. 

t  This  title  is  sometimes  given  to  the  conquerors  of  Briton,  be- 
cause the  Angles  were  a  leading  tribe  among  the  Saxon  conquer- 
ors. 


GREAT  BRITAIN,  123 

self  went  to  Briton — though  he  would  gladly  have  done  so 
had  his  duties  as  pope  of  Rome  allowed  him.  He,  how- 
ever, was  the  great  patron  and  promoter  of  the  mission  to 
these  reputed  barbarians.  Augustine,  commonly  called 
St.  Austin,  the  chosen  leader  of  the  forty  monks  who  were 
sent  on  this  embassy  of  proselytism,  seems  to  have  been 
a  worthy  representative  of  his  sovereign  lord  the  pope.* 
Jortin  calls  him  "  a  sanctified  ruffian."  Whether  or  not 
he  deserves  so  harsh  an  appellation,  certain  it  is,  that  the 
religion  introduced  by  Austin  was  little  better  than  that 
which  it  superseded.  By  the  order  of  his  sovereign  lord 
the  pope,  Austin  established  public  worship  in  the  heathen 
temples,  after  purifying  them  with  "  holy  water ;"  and  en- 
couraged the  people,  on  festive  occasions,  to  gather  around 
these  temples,  to  build  their  booths,  and  slaughter  their  cat- 
tle, and  feast  and  carouse,  as  they  had  been  accustomed  to 
do  under  the  reign  of  Woden.  This,  and  much  else  of  the 
same  general  character,  his  saintship  allowed,  on  the  very 
convenient  plea  of — adapting  the  forms  of  worship,  and  the 
order  of  the  church,  to  the  peculiarities  of  the  people 
among  whom  it  was  established.  And  it  will  not  be  easy, 
I  apprehend,  for  the  advocates  of  this  docirine,  to  show 
wherein  Gregory,  or  his  vicegerent,  acted  inconsistently 
with  this  convenient  doctrine.  If  we  may  depart  from  the 
apostolic  model,  in  order  to  accommodate  the  prejudices 
of  one  class  of  people,  or  to  adapt  the  church  to  one  form 
of  civil  government,  why  may  we  not  be  equally  accom- 
modating to  all  7  And  who  shall  say  :  Thus  far  shalt  thou 
go,  but  no  further!  The  truth  is — and  good  men  will  yet, 
I  believe,  come  to  see  it — there  is  no  stopping  place,  if  we 
go  beyond  the  law  and  the  testimony.  If  the  apostolic 
churches  are  not  our  patterns,  we  have  none.     And  if  we 

^  See  Jortin's  remarks,  quoted  by  Waddington,  p.  134,  note. 


124  HISTORY  OP  CONGREGATIONALISM., 

have  none  ;  every  people  may  consult  their  own  taste  and 
fancy  in  church  architecture. 

With  a  knowledge  of  Gregory's  principles,  and  Austin's 
policy,  we  need  not  wonder  that  eight  years  sufficed  to 
spread  Christianity — such  as  it  was — over  the  kingdom  of 
Kent^  the  eldest  of  the  heptarchy  kingdoms.  Tiiis  event 
was  hastened,  doubtless,  by  the  circumstance  that  Ethel- 
bert,  the  king  of  Kent,  had  married  Bertha,  a  christian 
princess,  daughter  of  the  king  of  Paris  ;  who,  for  eighteen 
years  previous  to  the  arrival  of  Austin^  had  supported  a 
private  chaplain  and  maintained  christian  worship  at  the 
court.  The  kingdom  of  Northumberland  followed  the  ex- 
ample of  Kent ;  12,000  persons,  we  are  told,  were  bap- 
tized in  a  single  day.  Before  the  close  of  the  seventh  cen- 
tury (about  A.  D.  686),  Christianity  had  become  the  re- 
ligion of  all  the  seven  kingdoms  of  the  Anglo-Saxons. 

The  character  of  the  converts  may  be  estimated  by  the 
ease  with  which  they  were  made,,  the  means  employed, 
and  by  the  readiness  with  which  these  converts  threw  off 
their  Christianity  and  returned  to  paganism,  and  put  it  on 
again,  at  the  bidding  of  their  king. 

A  single  story  shall  suffice  for  an  illustration  of  this 
whole  matter  : — Eadbald,  the  son  and  successor  of  Ethel- 
bert  the  first  christian  monarch  of  Kent,  conceiving  a  vio- 
lent passion  for  his  mother-in-law,  renounced  the  christian 
religion,  because  it  forbade  such  incestuous  marriages ; 
and,  with  most  of  his  subjects,  returned  to  the  worship  of 
Woden.  In  this  posture  of  affairs,  there  was  little  to  en- 
courage the  bishops  to  remain  in  the  kingdom,  and  two  ac- 
tually left.  Laurentius,  the  primate,  was  upon  the  point  of 
giving  up  all  further  attempts  to  Chri&timiize  the  kingdom, 
when  a  happy  expedient  was  suggested  to  his  mind  : — He 
appeared  one  morning  before   Eadbald,  and  throwing  off 


GREAT    BRITAIN.  125 

his  priestly  robes,  presented  his  lacerated  body  to  the  aston- 
ished king.  The  nnonarch  immediately  demanded  who 
had  dared  thus  to  abuse  so  venerable  a  person.  Lauren- 
tius  informed  him,  that  no  earthly  hands  had  thus  wounded 
him  ;  but,  that  St.  Peter  had  appeared  to  him  in  a  vision, 
and  after  severely  reprimanding  him  for  his  intended  de- 
sertion of  the  sheep  of  Christ,  had  inflicted  the  blows  which 
he  saw,  as  a  punishment  for  his  unfaithfulness.  The  apos- 
tate monarch  could  resist  no  longer ;  he  immediately  di- 
vorced his  wife,  and  returned  to  the  church.  His  subjects, 
as  in  duty  bound,  followed  his  example  ;  and  thus  the 
Christian  religion  f  was  firmly  established  in  the  eldest  of 
the  heptarchy  kingdoms.* 

Christianity  propagated  among  pagans  by  men  and  means 
such  as  have  now  been  described,  could  be  little  else  than 
a  change  of  superstitions.  The  history  of  Anglo-Saxon 
Christianity,  from  the  arrival  of  Bertha  and  her  chaplain,  in 
579,  to  the  end  of  the  heptarchy,  in  827, — a  period  of  248 
years — is  a  confirmation  of  this  reasonable  supposition.  It 
would  be  too  much  to  assert,  that  there  was  no  intelligent 
piety  in  the  land  ;  but,  it  is  perfectly  apparent  from  the  his- 
tory of  those  times,  that  Christianity  had  little  else  than  a 
name  to  live  while  it  was  dead.  Flowing  to  the  Saxons, 
as  it  did,  from  the  corrupt  fountain-head  of  papal  usurpa- 
tion, it  must  have  been  the  water  of  death,  rather  than  of 
life,  to  the  ignorant  islanders.  The  church  history  of  the 
heptarchy  is  a  loathsome  story  of  papal  imposition  on  the 
one  hand,  and  of  ignorant  and  superstitious  devotion  on  the 
other  hand.  Many  of  the  putrescent  abominations  of  Rome 
were  incorporated  into  the  Saxon  church.  Reverence  for 
their  sovereigp  lord  the  pope,  was  the  first  article  of  the 


"  See  Mosheim,  Book  II.  Cent.  VI.  Part  I.  Chap.  1.   and  Cent, 
VH.  P.  1.  c.  1.     And  Hume,  Vol.  1.  Chap.  1. 

u* 


126  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Saxon  creed.  A  devout  regard  for  all  that  wore  the  sacer^ 
dotal  habit,  stood  next  in  order.  The  wor9hip  of  saints  and 
reliques,  was  held  as  scarcely  less  important  than  that  of 
God  himself.  The  payment  of  "  Peter's  pence,"  would 
purchase  pardon  for  a  thousand  sins.  A  pilgrimage  to 
Rome,  the  establishment  of  a  monastery,  or  the  gift  of  pro- 
perty to  the  church — would  cover  the  most  flagitious  crimes. 
The  hoary-headed  villain  could  wash  his  hands  in  inno- 
cency,  quiet  the  upbraidings  of  conscience,  and  smooth  his 
path  to  hell,  by  making  over  to  the  church  the  profits  of 
his  villainy,  and  spending  his  last  days  within  the  hallowed 
walls  of  a  monastery. 

Danish  Invasion,  A.  D.  832. 

This  was  the  state  of  English  Christianity  up  to  the  time 
of  the  Danish  invasion,  A.  D.  882.  Confusion,  and  war, 
and  pillage,  and  flames,  and  blood,  attended  the  successive 
incursions  of  the  Danish  freebooters.  The  persevering  en- 
ergy and  the  bravery  of  Alfred,  finally  expelled  these  fierce 
invaders,  or  converted  them  into  obedient  subjects ;  and 
his  wisdom  restored  peace  and  prosperity  to  England,  after 
more  than  half  a  century  of  confusion  and  suffering ; — A.  D. 
893—901. 

Alfred  is  celebrated  in  English  history  for  his  martial 
valor,  the  excellent  laws  and  regulations  which  he  estab- 
lished throughout  his  kingdom,  for  the  encouragement  of 
learning,  and  finally,  for  his  pious  regard  for  the  interests 
of  religion.  That  there  was  a  call  for  his  fostering  care  of 
learning  and  piety,  is  but  too  obvious  from  the  complaint 
of  Alfred  himself; — "  that  on  his  accession,  he  knew  not 
one  person,  south  of  the  Thames,  who  could  so  much  as 
interpret  the  Latin  service  ;  and  very  few  in  the  northern 
parts  who  had  even  reached  that  pitch  of  erudition."* 
""  *  Hume's  England,  Vol.  I.  Chap.  2. 


GREAT  BRITAIN.  127 

The  Story  of  Dunstan. 

Haifa  century  had  scarcely  elapsed  from  the  death  of 
Alfred,  before  the  notorious  Dunstan^  ycleped  saint,  issued 
from  his  narrow  den,  to  delude  the  ignorant  with  his  mira- 
cles, and  to  curse  the  land  with  his  machinations.  Having 
failed  as  a  courtier,  he  turned  fakir.  He  built  him  a  cell, 
so  low  that  he  could  not  stand  erect  in  it,  and  of  dimensions 
so  contracted  that  he  had  not  room  to  stretch  himself. 
Here  he  spent  his  time  in  devotion  and  manual  labor.  But 
even  here — if  we  may  believe  his  monkish  biographers — 
his  saintship  was  not  exempt  from  company.  The  devil 
often  visited  him,  and  sorely  troubled  him.  At  length  com- 
ing one  day  under  the  form  of  a  beautiful  woman,  and 
thrusting  his  head  into  the  cell  of  the  saint,  Dunstan,  detect- 
ing the  fraud,  and  exasperated  beyond  further  forbearance, 
seized  a  pair  of  red  hot  pincers — made  ready  perhaps  for 
the  occasion — and  caught  the  fair  devil  by  the  nose,  and 
thus  held  him,  in  durance  vile,  while  the  neighborhood 
resounded  with  his  bellowings. 

This  veritable  piece  of  tragi-comic  history,  being  indus- 
triously circulated,  and  unhesitatingly  believed,  established 
Dunstan's  character  as  a  saint.  His  reputation  soon  intro- 
duced him  to  the  court  of  Edmund,  and  the  rich  abbey  of 
Glastonbury.  In  the  succeeding  reign  of  Edred  (A.  D. 
946),  he  became  the  prime  minister  of  England,  the  confi- 
dential adviser  of  the  king,  and  the  keeper  of  his  con- 
science. This  arrangement  facilitated  Dunstan's  plan  for 
enslaving  the  kingdom  to  the  sovereign  pontiff.  For  this 
purpose  he  introduced  into  the  island  a  new  order  of  monks 
— the  Benedictines — the  very  body-guard  of  the  pope. 
These  monks  having  bound  themselves  to  a  life  of  celibacy, 
were  loud  in  their  denunciations  of  the  regular  clergy.  The 


128  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISBI. 

old  clergy  of  the  kingdom,  being  married  men,  were  bound 
to  the  state  with  a  tie  not  less  strong  than  that  which  held 
them  in  obedience  to  the  Head  of  the  church.  The  ambi- 
tious designs  of  the  popes  could  not  well  be  attained  with- 
out an  order  of  men  entirely  separate  from  an  interest  in 
the  state.  In  the  Benedictines  this  class  of  men  were 
found  ;  and  it  was  the  policy  of  the  Roman  pontitf  to  em- 
ploy these  men  in  making  the  church  independent  of  the 
throne.  In  other  words — in  making  the  sceptre  subservi- 
ent to  the  crosier.  That  Dunstan  and  his  monks  did  much 
to  accomplish  this  purpose,  is  but  too  apparent  from  the  in- 
solent abuse  which  Edwy  and  his  beautiful  queen  suffered 
at  their  hands. 

This  prince,  the  successor  of  the  superstitious  Edred, 
venturing  to  marry  a  princess  more  nearly  allied  to  him  by 
birth  than  the  canon  law  allowed,  incurred  the  wrath  of 
his  chaste  ecclesiastics.  On  the  day  of  his  coronation  feast, 
Edwy,  having  retired  from  the  noisy  revellings  of  his  ba- 
rons, to  the  apartment  of  his  queen  and  her  mother,  was 
rudely  broken  in  upon  by  Dunstan  and  his  creature  Odo, 
archbishop  of  Canterbury.  Upbraiding  the  king  for  his  re- 
tirement, Dunstan  tore  him  from  his  aflTrighted  queen,  "  and 
pushed  him  back,  in  a  disgraceful  manner,  into  the  banquet 
of  the  nobles."* 

The  king,  though  afraid  to  resist  the  imperious  saint  at 
the  time,  soon  after  attempted  to  revenge  this  insult  by  call- 
inor  Dunstan  to  account  for  his  administration  of  the  treasu- 
ry  under  the  previous  reign.  The  haughty  minister,  refu- 
sing to  give  account  of  his  stewardship,  was  banished  the 
realm.  But  the  saint  ultimately  proved  too  strong  for  the 
king.  The  kingdom  was  filled  with  praises  of  the  banished 
one,  and  murmurs  against  his  persecutor.     And  when  the 

*  Hume. 


GREAT  BRITAIN.  129 

public  mind  was  ripe,  the  infamous  Odo  ordered  the  queen 
to  be  seized  ;  and  having  branded  her  beautiful  face  with 
a  hot  iron,  carried  her  away  captive  to  Ireland.  Edwy, 
finding  it  vain  to  resist,  at  length  submitted  to  a  divorce. 
In  the  meantime  Elgiva,  being  healed  of  her  wounds,  and 
regarding  herself  still  as  the  wife  of  the  king,  found  means 
to  escape  from  her  exile,  and  was  fleeing  to  her  husband. 
Odo,  being  apprised  of  her  movements,  intercepted  her  ; 
and  doomed  her  to  death.  "  She  was  hamstringed ;  and 
expired  a  few  days  after,  at  Glocester,  in  the  most  acute 
torments."*  This,  however,  was  not  the  end  of  the  trage- 
dy. The  people  were  stirred  up  by  the  ecclesiastics  to 
rebel  against  their  sovereign.  Edwy  was  driven  from  his 
throne,  and  excommunicated  from  the  church ;  and  at 
length  died,  the  object  of  clerical  hatred  and  persecution. 
Dunstan  was  recalled  in  triumph,  loaded  with  wealth  and 
honors  while  he  lived,  and  canonized  at  death. 

I  have  given  the  story  of  Dunstan  and  Edwy  as  a  fair 
illustration  of  the  state  of  religion,  as  a  national  establish- 
ment in  England,  to  the  end  of  the  tenth  century.  And, 
indeed,  wiih  slight  additions,  it  will  answer  well  for  the  re- 
flector of  the  English  church  for  another  half  century. 

Conquest  of  England,  hy  William^  duke  of  Normandy^ 

A.  D.  1066. 
The  Norman  Conquest,  which  was  sanctified  by  the 
pope,  Alexander  II,  and  facilitated  by  the  clergy  of  Eng- 
land— many  of  whom  were  Frenchmen  or  Normans,  intro- 
duced by  the  policy  of  Dunstan  and  his  coadjutors — was 
the  instrument,  in  the  pope's  hands,  of  breaking  down  the 
spirit  of  English  ecclesiastical  independence  which  had  so 
long  been  struggling  with  the   papal  hydra.     Before  the 


130  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

close  of  the  eleventh  century,  England  was  hardly  second 
to  France  or  Italy  in  devoted  attachment  to  the  see  of  Rome. 
It  is  true  that  the  Conqueror  controlled  this  growing  su- 
perstition by  the  might  of  his  power  and  the  strength  of  his 
genius — as  he  did  everything  else — so  as  to  make  it  sub- 
serve his  own  interests.  Still  the  evil  grew  apace  during 
his  reign,  and  proved  too  strong  for  some  of  his  successor's. 

Incroachmeiits  of  the  Pojje. 

Towards  the  close  of  this  century  the  right  of  election  to 
church  preferments,  and  investiture  in  the  same,  was  de- 
nied to  laymen  ;  and  a  fierce  contest  began  between  the 
English  monarch  and  his  clergy  and  their  sovereign  head 
upon  this  question.  This,  and  other  matters  involving  the 
question  of  the  pope's  supremacy  over  kings  and  princes, 
as  well  as  over  all  laymen — continued  to  distract  the  king- 
dom for  a  long  time.  Henry  I.  found  it  for  his  interest  to 
flatter  the  clergy,  and  not  to  break  with  the  pope  ;  and  yet, 
he  was  exceedingly  reluctant  to  yield  any  of  the  ancient 
prerogatives  of  the  crown.  The  contest  was  carried  oo 
during  the  greater  part  of  his  reign  ;  which  ended  A,  D, 
1135.  And,  though  neither  party  gained  a  complete  vic- 
tory, yet  it  was  evident  on  the  whole,  that  the  pope  and  his 
party  made*  progress  towards  sovereignty. 

Under  the  usurper  Stephen,  the  successor  of  Henry  I, 
and  during  the  civil  wars  which  occurred  in  this  reign,  the 
clergy,  being  indispensable  to  the  success  of  either  party, 
had  opportunity  to  advance,  yet  further,  towards  an  entire 
independence  of  the  crown.  And  appeals  to  the  pope  to 
settle  ecclesiastical  controversies,  which  had  not  before 
been  tolerated*  by  English  monarchs,  becoming  common 
during  these  troublous  times,  gave  his  holiness  greater 
power  in  that  kingdom  than  he  had  ever  before  possessed. 


GREAT  BRITAIN.  131 

Story  of  Thomas  a  Becket. 

^he  last  half  of  the  twelfth  century  witnessed  a  specta- 
cle "  such  as  had  never  before  been  exhibited  to  the 
world  ;"*  two  crowned  heads,  Henry  II.  of  England  and 
Lewis  of  France,  on  foot,  each  with  his  hand  upon  the 
rein  of  the  pope's  horse,  conducting  his  holiness  into  the 
castle  of  Torci.  Such  were  the  honors  paid  to  the  Man  of 
Sin  in  that  age. 

Henry  II,  nevertheless,  was  not  a  man  to  submit,  even 
to  the  pope,  longer  than  he  perceived  it  for  his  interest. 
Having  by  the  mediation  of  the  pontiff  reHeved  himself 
from  the  danger  of  a  war  with  Lewis,  he  immediately  turn- 
ed his  attention  to  the  state  of  ecclesiastical  affairs  in  his 
kingdom.  Perceiving  that  "  the  usurpations  of  the  clergy 
had  mounted  to  such  a  height  that  the  contest  between  the 
regale  and  {he  ponlificale  was  really  arrived  at  a  crisis  in 
England  ;"  and  ihat  it  had  become  necessary  to  determine 
"  whether  the  king  or  the  priests,  particularly  the  arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury,  should  be  sovereign  of  the  king- 
dom ;"t  Henry  resolved  to  curb  the  ambition  of  the  clergy  ; 
and  to  bring  the  church,  as  well  as  the  realm,  entirely  un- 
der his  control.  And  he  was  doubtless  the  man  to  do  this, 
if  arbitrary  power  could  have  accomplished  the  object. 
For  this  purpose  he  raised  to  the  see  of  Canterbury  his  fa- 
vorite, confidential  friend,  and  chancellor,  Thomas  a  Beck- 
et ;  a  man  who  well  understood  the  king's  plans,  and  who, 
heretofore,  had  been  entirely  subservient  to  the  monarch's 
wishes.  Becket  possessed  capacity  and  learning ;  lofty 
ambition  and  unshrinking  firmness;  and  soon  showed  him- 
self capable  of  playing  the  saint,  as  perfectly  as  he  had  pre- 

"  Cardinal  Baronius,  quoted  by  Hume,  Vol.  J.  Chap.  8. 
t  Hume,  as  above. 


l«i  HISTORY  05"  CONGRfeGATiONALisM. 

viously  done  the  courtier.  The  dainty  chancellor,  whose 
equipage  and  style  of  living  had  been  the  admiration  of  the 
kingdom,  suddenly  became  another  Dunstan.  Instead  of 
the  narrow  cell,  lower  than  a  man  could  stand  in,  and 
shorter  than  one  could  stretch  himself  in,  Becket  resorted 
to  a  hair  shirt,  worn  next  his  skin  ;  which  he  changed  so 
seldom  that  it  became  extremely  filthy,  and  was  filled  with 
vermin.  And,  instead  of  wounding  the  devil's  nose  with 
red-hot  pincers,  he  lacerated  his  own  back  with  frequent 
flagellations.  By  his  austerities  and  affected  humility  he 
soon  became  a  saint  of  the  highest  grade. 

In  the  meantime  the  archbishop,  so  far  from  cooperating 
with  the  king  in  his  efforts  to  curb  the  clergy,  set  himself 
in  direct  opposition  to  his  master.  Henry,  as  may  be  sup- 
posed, was  exasperated  to  the  highest  degree  to  find  his 
chosen  instrument  of  church  reform  turned  against  him. 
And  in  his  wrath  he  resolved  to  humble,  if  not  to  destroy 
the  prelate.  Becket,  perceiving  his  intention,  fled  in  dis- 
guise, and  took  shelter  under  the  wing  of  the  pope.  Alex- 
ander treated  him  with  distinguished  favor  ;  and  soon  made 
Henry  feel  the  strength  of  the  pope's  long  arm.  Though 
the  king  struggled  manfully  to  shake  off  the  grasp,  he  was 
compelled  at  length  to  yield.  And  so  low  was  the  imperi- 
ous monarch  of  England  reduced,  that  he  condescended  to 
hold  the  stirrup  of  the  victorious  Becket,  while  he  mounted 
his  horse.  Though  afterwards  the  peace  between  the  king 
and  his  archbishop  was  broken  ;  and  the  arrogance  of 
Becket  and  the  violence  of  Henry  caused  the  prelate's 
death  ;  yet  the  triumph  of  the  church  was  finally  complete, 
and  the  humbled  monarch  was  glad  to  make  his  peace  with 
Rome  by  doing  penance  at  Becket's  grave.  He  was  re- 
quired to  go  barefoot  to  the  tomb  of  the  martyr  ;  and  after 
kneeling  and  praying  for  some  time   upon  the  grave,  and 


GREAT  BRITAIN.  133 

submitting  to  be  scourged  by  the  monks,  be  was  compelled 
to  pass  the  day  and  night  without  refreshment,  kneebng 
upon  the  naked  stone. 

The  story  of  Beckel  may  serve  to  illustrate  the  relative 
position  of  Church  and  State  in  England,  up  to  the  close  of 
the  twelfth  century. 

England  made  a  vassal  to  the  Pope. 

It  was  reserved  for  John.^  one  of  the  most  odious,  coward- 
ly, and  contemptible  creatures  that  ever  filled  the  English 
throne,  to  complete  the  work  of  British  degradation,  and 
Innocent  III,  pope  at  that  time  (1199 — 1216),  was  a  fit  in- 
strument  in  the  hands  of  the  Dragon  to  carry  on  the  work  of 
infamy. 

John  began  his  career  by  murdering,  with  his  own  hands, 
his  innocent  nephew  Arthur,  duke  of  Brittany.  He  stab- 
bed him,  while  the  youth  was  on  his  knees  begging  for  life. 
And  then,  fastening  a  stone  to  the  body,  he  threw  it  into 
the  Seine,  as  one  would  the  carcase  of  a  beast.  John's 
next  step  was  to  apply  to  the  pope  to  preserve  him  from  the 
destructive  consequences  of  a  war  with  PhiHp  of  France, 
which  his  murderous  cruelty  towards  Arthur  had  excited. 
Encouraged  by  the  pusillanimity  of  John,  Innocent  took  oc- 
casion from  an  appeal,  soon  after  made  to  him  to  decide 
between  the  conflicting  claims  of  three  persons  who  had 
been  elected  to  the  archbishopric  of  Canterbury,  to  estab- 
lish the  right  of  the  papal  throne  to  appoint  who  it  would 
to  this  high  office,  the  second  in  the  kingdom  ; — an  usurpa- 
tion upon  the  rights  of  the  crown  which  no  pope  had  ever 
before  attempted.  John,  craven  spirited  as  he  was,  by  this 
act  was  inflamed  to  the  highest  pitch  of  resentment,  and 
vented  his  spite  upon  the  clergy  in  his  kingdom  who  appear- 
ed to  countenance  the  proceedings  of  the  pope.  The  pope 
12 


134  HISTORY  OF  COIVGREGATIONALISM. 

warned  the  refractory  monarch  ;  gently  remindinor  him  of 
the  story  of  Thomas  a  Becket.  But  finding  that  John  was 
not  inclined  to  submit,  Innocent  laid  the  kingdom  under  an 
interdict.  By  this,  most  of  the  outward  rites  of  religious 
worship  were  suspended  ;  the  altars  were  stripped  of  their 
ornaments  ;  the  reliques  and  images  of  saints  were  laid 
upon  the  ground  and  carefully  covered  up  ;  the  bells  were 
removed  from  the  steeples  of  the  churches  ;  the  dead  were 
buried  without  religious  rites,  in  common  ground,  or  thrown 
like  cattle,  into  ditches  ;  marriages  were  celebrated  in  the 
grave-yards  ;  meat  was  denied  to  all  classes  ;  entertain- 
ments and  pleasures  of  all  kinds  were  forbidden  ;  men  were 
prohibited  to  pay  even  a  decent  regard  to  their  persons, 
their  beards  were  to  go  unshorn,  and  their  apparel  unchan- 
ged ;  the  ordinary  salutations  of  friends  even  were  con- 
demned. These  were  some  of  the  terrific  consequences  of 
an  interdict  from  the  "  Vicar  of  God." 

John  raved  and  swore  at  this  act  of  papal  impudence. 
But  this  did  not  improve  his  situation.  All  the  resistance 
he  could  make  was  of  no  avail.  Excommunication  follow- 
ed the  interdict.  The  king  now  began  to  quail.  It  was 
not,  however,  until  the  sovereign  pontiff^  had  uttered  ano- 
ther thunder,  by  which  John  was  deposed  from  his  throne, 
and  his  subjects  absolved  from  their  allegiance  to  him,  and 
a  powerful  French  army  was  prepared  to  carry  out  the 
plans  of  his  holiness —  that  the  English  monarch  was  com- 
pletely subdued  and  tamed.  He  was  now  ready  to  make 
his  peace  with  Rome  on  any  terms.  In  token  of  his  peni- 
tence, and  as  an  evidence  of  his  entire  submission  to  his 
sovereign  lord  the  pope,  John  was  required  to  resign  his 
kingdom  to  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul,  to  St.  Innocent  III.  and 
all  his  holy  successors  ;  ''  and  abjectly  to  agree  to  hold  his 
dominions  as   a   feudatory  of  Rome."     The  legate  and 


GREAT  BRITAIN.  135 

representative  of  the  pope  was  the  person  to  whom  this 
surrender  was  made.  Having  made  this  submission  of  all 
his  rights,  and  honors,  and  titles,  John  was  next  required 
to  do  homage  to  the  legate,  for  the  privilege  of  holding  his 
crown,  and  administering  the  government  of  the  kingdom. 
This  he  did  under  the  following  humiliating  circumstances  : 
Unarmed,  the  monarch  entered  the  room  where  Pandolfo, 
the  legate,  sat  upon  a  throne  ;  and  throwing  himself  upon 
his  knees,  placed  his  joined  hands  between  those  of  Pan- 
dolfo, and  swore  fealty  to  the  pope  in  the  following  words : 
"  I  John,  by  the  grace  of  God,  king  of  England,  and  lord  of 
Ireland,  for  the  expiation  of  my  sins,  and  out  of  my  own  free 
will,  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  my  barons,  do  give  unto 
the  church  of  Rome,  and  to  pope  Innocent  III.  and  his  suc- 
cessors, the  kingdoms  of  England  and  Ireland,  together 
with  all  the  rights  belonging  to  them  ;  and  will  hold  them 
of  the  pope,  as  his  vassal.  I  will  be  faithful  to  God,  to  the 
church  of  Rome,  to  the  pope  my  lord,  and  to  his  successors 
lawfully  elected ;  and  I  bind  myself  to  pay  him  a  tribute  of 
one  thousand  marks  of  silver  yearly  ;  to  wit,  seven  hun- 
dred for  the  kingdom  of  England,  and  three  hundred  for 
Ireland."* 

This  humiliating  and  disgraceful  transaction  will  suffi- 
ciently illustrate  the  enslaved  and  wretched  condition  of  the 
kingdom  to  the  end  of  John's  reign,  A.  D.  1216. 

Papal  Tyranny  at  its  height. 
The  reign  of  Henry  III.  was  as  memorable  for  papal  ty- 
ranny and  extortion  as  that  of  John's,  his  immediate  prede- 
cessor.    It  was  the  longest  and  one  of  the  most  grievous 
reigns  that  England  ever  experienced.     The  kingdom  was 

*  Russell's  Modern  Europe,  Vol.  1.  Part  I.  Letter  31 ;  Hume, 
Vol.  1.  Chap.  11. 


136  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

filled  with  foreign  monks,  chiefly  Italians,  who  possessed 
thennselves  of  the  richest  benefices  in  the  land  ;  the  income 
of  which,  at  one  time,  during  this  reign,  was  estimated  at 
60,000  marks*— a  sum  greater  than  that  of  the  crown  itself 
Pluralities  and  non-residences  were  notoriously  common. 
"  Mansel,  the  king's  chaplain  is  computed  to  have  held,  at 
once,  seveji  hundred  ecclesiastical  livings."?  The  policy  of 
the  pope  during  this  reign,  seems  to  have  been  to  reap  a 
golden  harvest  from  the  usurpations  of  the  preceding  reigns. 
And  the  worst  of  it  was,  that  Henry  seemed  disposed  to 
encourage,  rather  than  to  repress  these  exactions.  The 
legate  of  the  pope  is  said  to  have  carried  out  of  the  king- 
dom, at  one  time,  more  money  than  he  left  in  it.  "  He 
exacted  the  revenues  of  all  vacant  benefices  ;  the  twentieth 
of  all  ecclesiastical  revenues  without  exception  ;  the  third 
of  such  as  exceeded  a  hundred  marks  a  year,  and  the  half 
of  such  as  were  possessed  by  non-residents.  He  claimed 
the  goods  of  all  intestate  clergymen  ;  he  pretended  a  title 
to  inherit  all  money  gotten  by  usury  ;  he  levied  benevo- 
lences upon  the  people  ;  and  when  the  king,  contrary  to 
his  usual  practice,  prohibited  these  exactions,  he  threatened 
to  pronounce  against  him  the  same  censures  which  he  had 
emitted  against  the  emperor  Frederic  ;"t  who  had  been 
excommunicated  and  deposed,  and  had  died  under  his  trou- 
bles. In  addition  to  all  these  impositions.  Innocent  exerci- 
sed the  right  of  setting  aside  any  elections  or  appointments 
to  ecclesiastical  offices.  Three  archbishops  were  succes- 
sively set  aside  by  him  ;  and  it  was  not  until  one  was  elect- 
ed of  his  own  nomination,  that  he  would  confirm  the  elec- 
tion. 

*  A  mark  was  13  shillings  and  4  pence,  which  would  make  the 
sum  equal  to  £40.000  ;  which,  considering  the  value  of  money  m 
those  days,  was  an  enormous  sum. 

i  Hume.  t  -Ibid. 


GREAT  BRITAIN.  137 

Papal  tyranny  reached  its  highest  pitch  during  this  reign. 
The  miserable  people,  ground  to  the  dust  by  the  high- 
handed robberies  of  the  king  and  the  pope,  began  at  length 
10  show  signs  that  patience  had  had  its  perfect  work  ;  and 
that  there  were  bounds  beyond  which  even  their  "  sove- 
reign Lord  God  the  Pope"  and  his  Italian  banditti  could  not 
safely  go.  Hood-winked,  and  priest-ridden,  as  the  English 
nation  had  long  been,  they  began  towards  the  close  of  this 
long  and  oppressive  reign,  to  exhibit  some  indications  that 
common  sense  had  not  entirely  abandoned  the  nation. 
False  decretals  and  new  orders  of  monks  were  imported  to 
allay  the  threatening  storm.  But  the  almighty  potency  of 
the  enchantments  of  The  Mother  of  Harlots  was  broken. 
The  eyes  of  the  nation  began  to  behold  things  in  their  true 
light. 

Henry's  successor,  Edward  I,  was  a  vigorous  prince ; 
and  by  no  means  disposed  to  yield  to  the  usurpations  of  the 
clergy  or  the  pope.  He  paid  the  tribute  money,  promised 
by  John,  with  great  reluctance  ;  and  though  the  oppressions 
of  Rome  long  continued,  a  burden  heavy  to  be  borne,  and 
the  kingdom  was  bound  in  the  chains  of  ignorance  and  su- 
perstition for  successive  ages  yet  to  come— still,  it  is  true, 
that  during  the  reign  of  the  third  Henry  and  the  first  Ed- 
ward, some  rays  of  light  began  to  break  upon  benighted 
England — sufficient  to  show  something  of  the  true  charac- 
ter of  his  pretended  holiness  of  Rome.  His  power  over 
England  had  now  reached  its  height ;  yea,  and  began  to 
wane  somewhat. 

The  Dominicans  and  Benedictines  introduced  into 
England. 
The  bare-footed  and  poverty-pleading  Dominicans  and 
Franciscans,  who  first  appeared  in  England  about  1221-— 
12* 


138  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

1234,*  raised,  for  a  season,  the  drooping  credit  of  Rome. 
These  mendicant  monks,  by  their  pretensions  to  piety,  by 
their  austerities  and  indefatigable  labors  in  travelling  through 
the  land,  and  preaching,  and  visiting  the  sick  and  dying, 
secured  to  their  orders  immense  wealth,  and  finally  en- 
grossed nearly  all  of  the  clerical  influence  of  the  kingdom. 
These  friars  being  now  the  favorite  troops  of  the  pope, 
made  good,  for  a  time,  his  possession  of  the  kingdom, 
which  the  ignorance,  and  indolence,  and  corruptions  of  the 
old  clergy,  and  the  rapacity  of  the  papal  court  itself,  had 
of  late  considerably  weakened.  At  length,  however,  the 
rapacity  and  success  of  these  sanctified  harpies  around  the 
bishops  and  the  secular  and  established  clergy,  and  the 
war  which  broke  out  between  them,  helped  to  prepare  the 
way  for  the  emancipation  of  the  kingdom  from  papal  chains. 

Bishop  Grossetcsle,  or  Greathead. 
It  was  about  the  middle  of  this  century  that  Grosseteste,  or 
Grealhead,  as  he  is  sometimes  called,  flourished.  He  was 
bishop  of  Lincoln  ;  and  is  celebrated  by  Matthew  Paris — 
himself  a  Romanist,  but  a  candid  historian — as  "  the  open 
reprover  both  of  my  lord  the  pope  and  of  the  king,  and  the 
censurer  of  the  prelates,  the  corrector  of  monks,  the  direc- 
tor of  priests,  the  instructor  of  the  clergy,  the  supporter  of 
scholars,  the  preacher  to  the  laity,  the  punisher  of  inconti- 
nence, the  diligent  investigator  of  various  writings,  and  last- 
ly, he  was  the  scourge  of  lazy  and  selfish  Romans,  whom 
he  heartily  despised  :"f  or,  as  Clarke  has  it, — "  A  mall  to 
the  Romanists,  and  a  contemner  of  their  doings. "J 

This  good  man's  labors  and  protests  against  papal  extor- 

*  See  Milner,  Vol.  II.  Cent.  Xlll.  Chap.  5. 
t  Quoted  by  Milner,  Cent.  XIII.  Chap.  7. 
%  Marty rology,  Chap.  56. 


GREAT  BRITAIN.  139 

tion  and  corruption  were  of  little  avail.  He  lived  too  soon. 
The  time  had  not  yet  come  for  one  to  chase  a  thousand,  or 
for  two  to  put  ten  thousand  to  flight.  He  was  honored  with 
an  excommunication  from  the  pope,  as  a  reward  for  the  fidel- 
ity with  which  he  had  labored  to  correct  ecclesiastical  abu- 
ses :  he  nevertheless  continued  in  his  bishopric  to  the  day  of 
his  death,  regardless  of  the  thunder  of  the  Vatican.  "  He 
departed  this  world  which  he  never  loved,"  A.  D.  1253 — to 
the  great  joy  of  Innocent  IV,  who  exclaimed,  on  hearing 
the  intelligence — "  I  rejoice,  and  let  every  true  son  of  the 
Roman  church  rejoice  with  me,  that  my  great  enemy  is 
removed."* 

Bradii^^ardine  and  Fitzrcdph. 
But  the  "  Man  of  Sin"  was  not  to  be  so  easily  rid  of  re- 
provers. Other,  and  more  successful  laborers,  if  not  more 
worthy  men,  were  soon  to  appear  in  the  same  field  in 
which  Grosseteste  had  toiled  and  died.  The  learned,  hum- 
ble, and  pious  Bradwardine,  confessor  to  Edward  III,  and 
afterwards  archbishop  of  Canterbury  ;  and  the  intrepid 
Irish  prelate,  Filzralph,  whose  vigorous  opposition  to  the 
mendicant  impostors  of  his  day  and  the  tyranny  of  Rome, 
embittered  his  life  with  persecution,  and  terminated  it  in 
painful  exile— deserve  to  be  mentioned  among  "  the  three 
mighty  men  of  the  fourteenth  century.  But  he  who  "sat 
in  the  seat,  chief  among  the  captains"  of  the  Lord's  hosts 
in  this  century,  is  yet  to  be  named. t 

*  See  Milner,  as  above. 

t  Milner,  Cent.  XIV.  Chap.  1,  notices  Fitzralph,  or  Fizraf,  as  he 
calls  him.  Prof.  Le  Bas,  in  his  "  Life  of  Wicklif ' — Introduction 
— gives  some  account  of  Fitzralph,  Grosseteste,  and  Bradvvardine, 
and  many  other  topics  introduced  in  these  pages.  The  reader  will 
find  an  interesting  account  of  Greathead,  as  he  is  calledj  in  Jones' 
Church  History,  Vol.  II. 


140  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

We  are  now  drawing  near  to  a  memorable  epoch  in  the 
history  of  the  English  church — yea,  of  Christendom  itself. 
An  epoch,  for  the  better  understanding  and  appreciation  of 
which  this  whole  survey  of  the  English  church  has  been 
undertaken.  It  was  in  the  course  of  this  century  that  the 
Star  of  the  Reformation  arose  in  the  English  horizon. 
A  star  of  heavenly  radiance  ;  whose  light,  while  it  shot  ter- 
ror into  "  the  Seat  of  the  Beast,"  cheered  the  hearts  of 
multitudes  who  were  waiting  for  the  "  Consolation  of  Is- 
rael," by  guiding  the  footsteps  of  wise  men  to  the  source  of 
all  truth. 

John  Wickliffe  was  born  early  in  the  fourteenth  cen- 
tury. The  following  chapter  will  be  devoted  to  an  exhibi- 
tion of  the  life  and  sentiments  of  this  great  and  good  man; 
and  thus  will  be  resumed,  after  this  long  digression,  the 
proper  history  of  Congregationalism. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


JOHN  WICKLIFFE,  "  THE  MODERN  DISCOVERER   OF    THE  PRIN- 
CIPLES OF  CONGREGATIONAL  DISSENT,"  A.  D.   1324. 

John  Wickliffe  is  entitled  to  a  prominent  place  in  the 
History  of  Congregationalism.  This  remarkable  man, 
"  honored  of  God  to  be  the  first  preacher  of  a  general  re- 
formation to  all  Europe,"*  and  "  the  modern  discoverer  of 
the  doctrines  of  Congregational  dissent,"t  was  born  about 


*  Milton,  quoted  in  the  Edin.  Enc.  Art.  WyclifFe. 

t  London  and  Westminster  Review,  No.  1.  1837,  Art.  John  De 
Wycliffe. — The  name  of  the  Reformer  is  spelt  in  almost  every  con- 
ceivable way  :  as  Wiclif,  Wickliff,   Wickleif,  WyclifFe,  De  Wye- 


JOHN  WICKLIFFE.  141 

the  year  1324.  The  place  of  his  nativity  was  a  small  vil- 
lage bearing  his  name,  near  Richmond,  Yorkshire  county, 
England.  His  ancestors  appear  to  have  been  persons  of 
wealth  and  distinction,  who,  from  the  Norman  conquest,  in 
1066,  to  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century,  "  were  lords  of 
the  manor,  and  patrons  of  the  rectory"  of  WicklilTe.* 

WicklifTe  was  early  designed  for  the  church.  He  en- 
tered Queen's  college  (so  called  from  its  founder  Philippa, 
queen  of  Edward  111.)  not  far  from  the  year  1340,  when 
about  seventeen  years  of  age.  Not  finding  in  that  recently 
founded  institution  the  advantages  which  he  desired,  he 
soon  removed  to  Merton  college  ;  celebrated  as  the  Alma 
Mater  of  "  the  invincible  doctor,"  William  Occham,  and 
"the  profound  doctor,"  Thomas  Bradvvardine,  and  others 
of  no  less  renown.  Flere  he  applied  himself  to  study  with 
so  much  earnestness  and  success,  that  he  soon  became  one 
of  the  most  distinguished  of  the  sons  of  Merton.  He  gave 
himself,  with  intense  diligence,  to  the  study  of  the  scholas- 
tic philosophy  so  fashionable  in  his  day.  He  made  himself 
master  of  all  the  intricacies  of  the  Aristotelian  logic,  and 
familiarized  himself  with  the  philosophical  mysteries  of  the 

lifFe,  etc.  The  only  reason  why  I  write  Wic/diffc,  is  that  the  au- 
thors whom  I  first  read  spelt  his  name  in  this  way,  and  I  thus  ac- 
quired the  habit  of  doing  the  same. 

*  I  quote  from  Prof.  Le  Bas,  to  whose  valuable  life  of  the  Re- 
former I  am  much  indebted.  It  is  published  by  the  Harpers  as 
No.  1.  of  their  "  Theological  Library."  Witli  Le  Bas',  I  have 
compared  Milner's  extended  notice  of  Wickliffe  and  his  followers, 
and  Clarke's  in  his  "  Martyrology,"  and  several  other  biographi- 
cal and  historical  notices  of  the  Reformer.  The  memoir  of  the 
life  and  writings  of  this  great  man  by  Dr.  Vaugkan,  of  the  London 
University,  "  is,  unquestionably,  the  most  complete  account  of  his 
works  which  has  ever  yet  been  laid  before  the  public."— Le  Bas, 
Preface. 


142  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Stagirite.  "  The  bitterest  enemy  of  his  name  [Knighton] 
has  described  him  as  '  second  to  none  in  philosophy,  and  in 
scholastic  discipline  altogether  incomparable.'  "  In  addi- 
tion to  these  accomplishments,  Wickliffe  devoted  himself 
to  the  study  of  the  civil  and  canon,  or  ecclesiastical  law ; 
and  made  himself  acquainted  with  "the  municipal  laws  and 
customs  of  his  own  country."*  His  varied,  and  extensive, 
and  accurate  knowledge,  enabled  him  to  stand  "  without  a 
rival  in  the  public  disputations,  which  were  then  in  high 
repute  ;"!  and  procured  for  him  the  highest  reputation  in 
the  university,  and  in  the  kingdom  generally.  This  repu- 
tation for  logical  acuteness  and  scholastic  learning  gave  his 
peculiar  theological  opinions  great  influence.  These  were 
formed  chiefly  by  a  diligent  study  of  the  sacred  Scriptures. 
In  the  knowledge  of  these  Wickliffe  excelled  all  his  con- 
temporaries, and  earned  from  them  the  enviable  title  of 
The  Evangelical  Doctor^  or  Gospel  Doctor.  But  in  his 
devotion  to  the  inspired  volume,  he  did  not  neglect  the  fa- 
thers of  the  church  :  Augustine,  Jerome,  Basil,  and  Grego- 
ryj  appear  to  have  been  his  favorite  authors  among  the 
primitive  writers  ;  and  Grosseteste  and  Fitzralph  among  the 
moderns. 

It  is  impossible  for  us,  in  this  age  of  scriptural  intelli- 
gence, duly  to  estimate  the  strength  of  mind,  the  depth  of 
principle,  and  the  intrepidity  of  the  man,  who,  in  \\\e  four- 
teenth century,  could  break  away  from  Duns  Scotus,  Peter 
Lombard,  Aristotle,  and  "  Mother  Church,"  and  form  his 
theological  opinions  from  the  word  of  God,  aided  by  the 
lights  of  the  fourth  century.     A  writer  of  the  twelfth  cen- 

*  Le  Bas'  Life  of  Wiclif,  p.  102. 

t  Milner,  Cent.  XI V.  Chap.  8. 

X  His  biographer  does  not  tell  us  which  of  the  Gregories,  but 
probably  the  bishop  of  Nyssa,  in  Cappadocici. — See  Mosheimj  Cent, 
IV.  P.  11.  Chap.  ^. 


JOHN  WICKLIFFE.  143 

tury,  quoted  by  Prof.  Le  Bas,  tells  us,  that  in  his  day — and 
it  was  not  materially  otherwise  in  Wickliffe's — those  teach- 
ers who  appealed  to  the  Scriptures  for  authority  were  "  not 
only  rejected  as  philosophers,  but  unwillingly  endured  as 
clergymen — nay,  were  scarcely  acknowledged  to  be  men. 
They  became  objects  of  derision,  and  were  termed  the  bul- 
locks of  Abraham,  or  the  asses  of  Balaam^ 

In  defiance  of  all  this  contempt,  John  Wickliffe  became 
a  diligent  student  of  the  Bible,  and  a  constant  expounder  of 
its  sacred  contents.  "Some  three  hundred  of  his  manu- 
script homilies  [or  expository  discourses]  are  still  preserved 
in  the  British  Museum,  and  in  the  libraries  of  Cambridge 
and  Dublin,  and  in  other  collections."* 

This  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  truth  of  God  opened 
the  eyes  of  the  faithful  student,  to  the  falsehoods  of  men. 
He  began  to  see  the  inconsistencies,  and  absurdities,  and 
iniquities  of  those  who  were  the  spiritual  guides  of  the  peo- 
ple. And  what  he  saw,  he  dared  to  speak  ;  and  what  he 
spake,  was  not  in  doubtful  terms.  The  first  publication 
from  his  vigorous  pen,  was  in  1356,  when  he  was  about 
twenty-five  years  old.  The  nation  at  that  time  had  been 
suffering  for  several  years  under  a  grievous  plague  :  pro- 
bably more  than  one  hundred  thousand  of  his  countrymen 
had  fallen  before  the  destroyer  :  "  men's  hearts  were  fail- 
ing them  for  fear,  and  for  looking  after  those  things  which 
[had  come]  on  the  earth."  The  devout,  and  perhaps  some- 
what excited  mind  of  Wickliffe  regarded  this  awful  pesti- 
lence as  the  servant  of  an  angry  God,  sent  forth  to  chas- 
tise the  nation  for  its  sins,  and  to  announce  the  commence- 
ment of  "  the  last  age,"  and  the  speedy  approach  of  the 
end  of  the  world.  Under  these  impressions  he  published  a 
tract  bearing  the  title — "  De  ultima  Mtate  Ecclesiae,^'' — 
*  Le  Bas, 


144  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Concerning  the  Last  Age  of  the  Church.  In  this  work  he 
boldly  inveighs  against  the  vvorldliness,  the  rapacity,  the 
sensuality,  the  simony,  and  the  utter  degeneracy  of  the 
clergy  ;  and  denounces  them,  as  blind  guides,  who,  instead 
of  leading  the  people  by  precept  and  example  into  the  ways 
of  truth  and  holiness,  had  plunged  with  them  into  the  abyss 
of  sin  and  crime.  Thus  the  Reformer  fairly  launched  forth 
among  the  stormy  elements  whose  buffetings  he  was  desti- 
ned long  to  endure. 

About  four  years  after  this  publication  Wickliffe  was 
found  in  the  front  rank  of  opposition  to  the  Mendicants* 
Allusion  has  already  been  made  to  the  introduction  of  these 
pretended  poverly-loving  beggars.  Under  pretence  of  zeal 
for  "  Holy  Church,"  they  had  spread  themselves  thickly 
over  the  kingdom  ;  and  had  engrossed  nearly  all  of  the 
clerical  duties  of  the  nation.  Travelling  continually  as 
they  did,  and  numerous  as  they  were,  they  gained  access 
to  all  classes  of  society  in  every  section  of  tlie  country. 
They  were  the  companions  and  confessors  of  the  rich,  and 
the  preachers  and  directors  of  the  poor.  Ever  ready  to 
confess  all  that  come  to  them,  and  ignorant,  as  they  neces- 
sarily were,  of  the  character  of  those  who  applied  for  abso- 
lution, these  Mendicants  virtually  encouraged  every  species 

*  The  title  of  "Mendicants''  is  given  to  the  numerous  orders  in 
the  Romish  church,  who,  under  pretence  of  renouncing  the  world 
and  all  earthly  acquisitions,  were  licensed  bj  the  pope  to  roam 
over  the  world  and  make  proselytes  to  anti-christ,  and  subsist  upon 
the  gifts  of  the  people,  without  having,  like  the  regular  clergy^ 
any  fixed  revenues  for  their  support.  Previous  to  the  time  of 
WickliiFe  these  beggars  had  become  so  numerous  and  audacious, 
that  the  church  herself  could  not  endure  them  all.  Gregory  the 
Xth,  therefore,  suppressed,  in  127'2,  all  but  the  Dominicans,  Fran- 
ciscans, Carmelites  and  Auguslines.  The  friars  who  infested 
England  were  principally  Dominicans  and  Franciscans. 


JOHN    WICKLIFFE.  145 

of  iniquity.  The  wicked  would  say  to  each  other  :  "  Let 
us  follow  our  own  pleasure.  Some  one  of  the  preaching 
brothers  will  soon  travel  this  way  ; — one  whom  we  never 
saw  before,  and  never  shall  see  again  ;  so  that,  when  we 
have  had  our  will,  we  can  confess  without  trouble  or  an- 
noyance."* 

Not  content  with  this  absorption  of  the  duties  of  the 
regular  clergy,  and  this  encouragement  of  crime,  these  vo- 
racious animals  laid  hold  of  every  civil  office  within  their 
reach.  They  even  entered  the  court  "  in  the  character 
of  counsellors,  and  chamberlains,  and  treasurers,  and  nego- 
tiators of  marriage. "t  By  their  numerous  arts  and  efforts ; 
by  lying,  and  begging,  and  confessing  ;  by  frightening  the 
ignorant,  and  flattering  the  rich — "  within  the  four  and 
twenty  years  of  their  establishment  in  England,  these  friars 
[had]  piled  up  their  mansions  to  a  royal  altitude. "t 

A  man  of  WicklifTe's  character  could  not  contemplate 
these  movements  without  indignation.  But  that  which 
brought  him  more  immediately  into  conflict  with  these 
"  Black  Friars,"!  was  their  encroachments  on  the  Univer- 
sity of  Oxford.  The  first  monastery  of  the  Dominicans 
was  erected  near  this  ancient  seat  of  learning,  and  enjoyed 
the  countenance  and  encouragement  of  its   professors.     It 

*  Matthew  Paris,  quoted  by  Le  Bas,  p.  114. 

t  Matth  Paris  in  Le  Bas,  p.  J13. — Matthew  Paris  was  "  one  of 
the  best  English  historians,  from  William  the  Conqueror  to  the 
latter  end  of  the  reign  of  Henry  III.  *  *  He  was  a  man  of  extra- 
ordinary-knowledge for  the  thirteenth  century;  and  of  an  excel- 
lent moral  character;  and,  as  an  historian,  of  strict  integrity." — 
London  Encyclopaedia. 

+  This  appellation  they  bore  from  the  circumstaTice  that  their 
dress  was  black.  When  they  first  settled  in  London,  a  tract  of 
land  was  given  them  by  the  city,  which  lies  along  'the  Thames, 
and  still  bears  the  name  o^  Black  friars. 

13 


146  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

was  not  long,  however,  before  the  university  had  reason  to 
deplore  the  influence  of  the  friars.  Their  acquaintance 
with  all  classes  in  society,  in  all  parts  of  the  kingdom  ; 
their  pretensions  to  piety  ;  their  influence  and  wealth  ;  en- 
abled them  to  draw  away  from  the  university,  to  their 
monasteries,  vast  numbers  of  young  men.  Many  parents, 
unwilling  to  have  their  sons  enter  on  a  life  of  mendicancy, 
"  were  more  willing,"  as  Fitzralph  tells  us,  "  to  make  them 
'  ertlie  iilyers'  [earth  tillers],  and  have  them,  than  to  send 
them  to  the  universitie,  and  lose  them."  The  operation  of 
these  causes,  in  a  few  years  reduced  the  number  of  stu- 
dents in  Oxford,  from  thirty  thousand  to  six  thousand.  It 
was  not  to  be  expected  that  the  university  would  tamely 
submit  to  such  encroachments  upon  its  prerogatives.  Aided 
by  the  bishops  and  the  regular  clergy,  her  professors  had 
for  some  time  been  at  war  with  the  mendicant  army,  when, 
in  1360,  WicklifTe  entered  the  lists.  His  earnest,  bold,  and 
eflective  opposition  to  these  depredators,  secured  the  grati- 
tude of  the  learned,  and  the  esteem  of  the  community.  His 
learning,  and  talents,  and  fearless  advocacy  of  the  rights  of 
the  university  were  soon  after  rewarded  by  an  appointment 
to  the  wardenship,  or  presidency  of  Baliol  college  ;  and  in 
1365,  to  that  of  Canterbury  Hall.  From  this  last  station  he 
was  removed,  under  circumstances  of  great  injustice,  by 
archbishop  Langham,  a  protege  of  the  pope.  From  this 
unrighteous  act,  Wicklifle  appealed  to  his  holiness;  who, 
after  a  delay  of  three  or  four  years^  confirmed  the  doings 
of  the  primate.  Such  a  decision  might  have  been  anticipa- 
ted by  any  one  who  witnessed  the  Reformer's  course, 
during  the  pendency  of  his  cause  at  Rome.  For,  "  regard- 
less of  consequences,"  he  had  "  continued  his  attacks  on 
the  insatiable  ambition,  tyranny,  and  avarice  of  the  ruling 
ecclesiastics  ;  as  also,  on  the  idleness,  debauchery,  and  hy- 


JOHN   WICKLIFFE.  147 

pocrisy  of  the  friars  ;* — a  sufficient  refulalion  of  the  charge, 
that  personal  resentment  for  his  ejectment  from  Canterbury 
Hall,  was  the  main-spring  of  his  opposition  to  the  pope  and 
his  ecclesiastics. 

In  the  meantime  Wickliflfe  was  publicly  challenged  to 
defend  his  prince,  Edward  III,  and  the  parliament,  in  their 
refusal  to  pay  the  pope,  the  odious  tribute  stipulated  by  king 
John.  This  challenge  he  readily  accepted,  and  stood  forth 
the  advocate  for  British  independence,  against  the  usurpa- 
tions and  tyranny  of  Rome  ; — an  undertaking  as  odious  in 
Rome,  as  it  was  popular  in  England.  It  probably  secured 
for  him  the  favor  of  the  court,  and  the  protection  which  he 
afterwards  experienced  from  the  machinations  of  his  ene- 
mies. These  labors  for  the  university,  the  king,  and  his 
country,  in  addition  to  his  high  merit  as  a  scholar  and  di- 
vine, obtained  for  the  Reformer  the  degree  of  Doctor  of 
Divinity,  which  he  received  in  1372,  and  the  theological 
chair  of  Oxford.  These  honors  gave  him  yet  more  exten- 
sive influence  ;  and  enabled  him  to  labor  with  greater  suc- 
cess in  the  cause  of  truth.  His  love  of  the  Scriptures,  and 
his  desire  to  enlighten  his  countrymen  induced  him,  soon 
after  his  elevation  to  the  theological  professorship,  to  pre- 
pare a  plain  and  familiar  exposition  of  the  Ten  Command- 
ments, for  general  circulation.  The  necessity  for  such  a 
work  may  be  estimated  by  what  he  tells  us  in  his  preface, 
— that  it  was  no  uncommon  thing  for  men  "  to  call  God, 
Master^  forty  ^  three-score^  or  four -score  years ;  and  yet  re- 
main  ignorant  of  his  Ten  Commandments.''''  This  publica- 
tion was  followed  by  several  small  tracts,  entitled  "  The 
Poor  Catiff,"  or  instruction  for  the  poor ;  "  written  in  Eng- 
lish, as  the  author  declares,  for  the  purpose  of  '  teaching 
simple  men  and  women  the  way  to  heaven.''  "t 

*  Mijner,  Cent.  XIV.  Chap.  3. 

t  These  tracts,  with  some  other  selections  from  WicklifFe's  prac- 


148  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

These  humble  labors  of  the  learned  professor,  furnish  a 
beautiful  comnnentary  on  his  religious  character,  and  are 
in  perfect  keeping  with  the  enviable  title  which  he  long  en- 
joyed of  The  Evangelical  Doctor. 

In  the  year  1374,  Wickliffe  was  called  from  the  univer- 
sity, into  public  life.  He  was  sent  by  parliament  on  an 
embassy  to  the  pope,  to  obtain  the  redress  of  certain  eccle- 
siastical grievances  under  which  the  kingdom  was  then 
suffering. 

In  the  chapter  preceding  this,  a  brief  sketch  was  given 
of  some  of  the  prominent  abuses  to  which  the  English  na- 
tion were  for  a  long  time  subjected  ;  by  which  the  wealth 
Gf  ihe  kingdom  was  absorbed  by  the  clergy — mendicant  and 
regular — or  drained  off  by  the  pope.  These  abuses  had 
continued,  despite  of  complaints,  and  protests,  and  tempo- 
rary resistance.  There  had  long  been  gathering  in  the 
breasts  of  the  peoi)le,  a  spirit  of  opposition  to  the  tyranny 
of  Rome.  This  with  difficulty  had  been  kept  under,  by  the 
united  power  of  the  throne,  and  the  clergy.  England  had 
now  (in  1374)  been  ruled  for  more  than  forty  years  by  one 
of  her  most  accomplished  and  popular  monarchs.  Edward 
III,  though  guilty  of  many  arbitrary  acts  of  government, 
had  the  wisdom,  or  the  policy,  to  consult  the  opinions  and 
wishes  of  his  subjects  more  than  any  one  of  his  predeces- 
sors. He  was  a  hero  and  a  conqueror  ;  and,  as  such,  had 
acquired  great  applause  and  influence  in  that  semi-barbar- 
ous age.  His  numerous  warlike  expeditions  compelled 
him  to  call  frequently  for  supplies  from  his  parliament ; 
and  his  good  sense,  or  his  necessities,  induced  him  to  yield 
more  to  their  pleasure  in  granting  privileges,  and  immuni- 
ties, and  protections  to  the  people,  than  had  been  common 

tical  writings,  have  been  published  by  the  London  Religious  Tract 
Stocietv, 


JOHN    WICKLIFFE.  149 

previous  to  his  time.  The  authority  of  the  Great  Charter 
was  so  often  confirmed  during  this  reign,  that  it  became  im- 
movably fixed,  as  a  limitation  of  the  royal  power.  The 
king  was  made  to  feel  that  there  was  a  power  wider  the 
throne,  if  not  above  it,  whose  heavings  were  not  to  be  de- 
spised, nor  disregarded  with  impunity.  The  people,  for 
whose  benefit  all  government — civil  and  ecclesiastical — 
should  be  administered,  but  who  had  hitherto  been  least  re- 
garded in  its  administration  ;  who  had  been  trampled  upon 
by  their  princes  and  nobles,  and  worst  of  all,  by  their 
clergy — began  now  to  rear  their  heads,  and  raise  their  in- 
dignant voices.  With  such  teachers  as  John  Wickliffe  and 
his  "  poor  priests,"  the  English  nation  were  likely  to  un- 
derstand something  of  their  ecclesiastical  rights,  and  to  as- 
sert them  with  more  courage  and  success  than  ever  before. 
The  people  moved  parliament,  and  the  parliament  moved 
the  king — himself  no  wise  unfavorably  disposed— to  inquire 
into  the  ecclesiastical  abuses,  by  which  the  pope  and  his 
creatures  were  eating  out  the  vilals  of  the  kingdom.  The 
result  of  this  inquiry  was  the  discovery,  that  more  than  one 
half  of  the  landed  property  of  the  kingdom  was  in  the  hands 
of  a  corrupt  and  indolent  clergy  ; — that  many  of  the  most 
lucrative  benefices  were  in  the  possession  of  foreigners, 
and  some  of  them  but  boys,  who  knew  not  the  language  of 
the  country,  nor  had  even  so  much  as  set  foot  on  English 
soil ; — that  the  pope's  collector  and  receiver  of  Peter's 
pence,  who  kept  "  an  house  in  London,  with  clerks  and 
officers  thereunto  belonging — transported  yearly  to  the  pope 
twenty  thousand  marks,  and  most  commonly  more  ;" — 
that  other  foreign  dignitaries,  holding  ecclesiastical  benefi- 
ces in  the  kingdom  though  residing  at  Rome,  received 
yearly  an  equal,  or  greater  sum  (20,000  marks)  for  their 
sinecures  ; — and  finally,  "  ihat  the  tax  paid  to  the  pope  of 
13* 


150  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISBI. 

Rome  for  ecclesiastical  dignities,  doth  amount  to  jive-jold 
as  much  as  the  tax  of  all  the  profits,  as  appertain  to  the 
king,  by  the  year,  of  this  whole  realm."* 

Such  were  some  of  the  results  of  the  inquiry,  set  on  foot 
by  the  parliament,  into  the  ecclesiastical  abuses  of  that  age. 
Wickliffe  was  one  of  the  commissioners  chosen  by  parlia- 
ment to  lay  these  complaints  before  the  court  of  Eome. 

The  conference  with  the  pope  was  appointed  at  Bruges, 
a  large  city  of  Austria.  Thither  the  English  commission- 
ers repaired.  They  soon  found,  however,  that  they  had 
brought  their  wares  to  a  glutted  market.  Ecclesiastical 
abuses  were  things  little  regarded  by  the  Roman  traders. 
It  was  like  carrying  coals  to  New  Castle,  to  carry  their 
budget  of  complaints  to  Bruges,  The  mission  was,  never- 
theless, attended  with  one  advantage — it  forced  wide  open 
the  eyes  of  the  Reformer ;  he  no  longer  saw  "  men  as  trees 
walking  ;  but  he  beheld,  as  with  open  vision,  the  full  grown 
Man  of  Sin,  the  antichrist  of  the  latter  days.  On  his  return 
to  England,  Wickliffe  openly  denounced  His  Holiness,  as 
"  the  most  cursed  of  dippers,  and  purse  kervers,'''' — purse 
cutters;  and  made  the  kingdom  ring  with  his  descriptions 
of  papal  impostures,  and  papal  corruptions. 

These  bold  and  violent  attacks  upon  the  sovereign  pon- 
tiff and  his  dissolute  clergy,  were  neither  unnoticed  nor  un- 
heeded at  Rome.  The  storm  of  hierarchal  wrath  had  long 
been  gathering  ;  and  its  thunders  at  length  began  to  mutter 
over  the  Reformer's  head.  Kinr?  Edward  was  now  aged 
and  infirm,  and  nigh  unto  death  ;  and  Richard  II,  his  grand- 
son and  successor,  was  a  minor.  The  hierarchy,  probably, 
deemed  this  a  favorable  time  to  attack  the  obnoxious  here- 
tic.    Accordingly,  in    1377,  Wickliffe  was  cited  to  appear 

*  The  reader  will  find  an  abstract  of  the  complaints  of  the  par- 
liauient,  founded  on  this  investigation,  in  Le  iJas,  pp.  153,  154. 


JOHN   WICKLIFFE.  151 

before  the  convocation  of  the  clergy,  to  answer  to  the 
charge  of  heresy.  It  was  a  moment  of  peril  to  the  Re- 
former ;  there  was  in  his  judges  the  willing  mind  to  do  their 
worst  upon  him  ;  and,  if  no  arm  more  mighty  than  theirs 
should  be  revealed  for  his  protection,  the  days  of  the  good 
man's  usefulness,  and  perhaps  of  his  life,  were  numbered. 
At  this  critical  juncture,  God  raised  up  for  his  servant  a 
powerful  friend  and  protector  in  the  person  of  the  duke  of 
Lancaster,  commonly  known  as  John  of  Gaunt^  so  called 
from  the  place  of  his  birth.  He  was  the  third  son  of  Ed- 
Vi^ard  III,  and  uncle  to  Richard  II,  and  principal  regent  of 
the  kingdom  during  the  minority.  Henry  Percy, etiil  mar- 
shal of  England,  also  befriended  VVickliffe.  These  noble- 
men bade  him  be  of  good  cheer;  and,  for  his  encourage- 
ment and  protection,  attended  him  in  person  lo  the  house 
of  convocation.  Immediately  on  the  entrance  of  the  party, 
a  quarrel  commenced  between  the  high-blooded  Percy  and 
the  bishop  of  London  ;  which,  from  words,  had  well  nigh 
come  to  blows.  This  personal  quarrel,  between  my  lord 
clerical  and  my  lord  seculai',  so  disturbed  the  proceedings 
of  the  convocation,  that  it  soon  broke  up  in  confusion,  and 
its  victim  escaped  untouched. 

During  the  same  year  (1377),  parliament  called  on 
Wickliffe  to  give  his  judgment  on  the  question  : — "  Whether 
the  kingdom  of  England,  on  an  eminent  necessity  of  its 
own  defence,  might  lawfully  detain  the  treasure  of  the 
kingdom,  that  it  might  not  be  carried  out  of  the  land  ;  al- 
though ihe  lord  pope  required  it,  on  pain  of  censures,  and 
by  virtue  of  the  obedience  due  to  him." 

This  question,  so  illustrative  of  the  exorbitance  of  the 
pope,  and  of  the  rising  spirit  of  the  nation,  Wickliffe  an- 
swered boldly  in  the  affirmative. 

These  repeated  good  offices  for  his  country,  though  they 


152  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

rendered  the  Reformer  eminently  popular  in  England,  were 
treasuring  up  wrath  for  him  in  Rome.  Before  the  close  of 
the  year  1377,  the  thunders  of  the  Vatican  were  again  peal- 
ing over  his  head.  No  less  than  four  bulls  were  let  loose 
from  Rome,  armed  with  power  to  overthrow  and  punish 
"  the  audacious  innovator."  In  these  instruments,  "  His 
Holiness"  laments  and  denounces  "  the  pernicious  heresy" 
and  the  "  detestable  insanity  "  which  had  induced  "  John 
Wickliffe,  rector  of  the  church  of  Lutterworth,  and  profes- 
sor of  the  Sacred  Page — (it  were  weU  if  he  were  not  a 
master  of  errors)— to  spread  abroad  opinions  utterly  sub- 
versive of  the  church,"  etc.  *  *  ;  and  ordered  sea^et  in- 
quiry to  be  made  into  the  matters  charged  against  him,  and 
if  found  true,  the  heretic  to  be  immediately  seized,  and  im- 
prisoned, and  detained,  "  until  further  directions  should  be 
received."  Three  of  these  papal  bulls  were  addressed  to 
the  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  and  the  bishop  of  London  ; 
who  cordially  reciprocated  the  dolors  of  "  His  Holiness  ;" 
and  eagerly  desired  to  glut  their  malice  upon  the  impudent 
reformer.  But  the  fourth  bull,  addressed  to  the  University 
of  Oxford,  met  with  a  very  cold  reception.  The  zeal  of 
the  primate  soon  prepared  another  inquisitorial  court  to  try 
the  heretic, — and  Wickliffe  was  sunuTioned  to  Lambeth 
chapel  to  give  account  of  himself  to  the  ecclesiastical  pow- 
ers. The  Londoners,  who  were  now  "  deeply  infected  by 
the  heresy  of  Wickliffe,"  getting  wind  of  what  was  going 
on,  surrounded  the  chapel  of  the  archbishop,  and  gave  such 
demonstrations  of  interest  in  the  defender  of  the  people's 
rights,  as  materially  to  disturb  the  equanimity  of  the  papal 
conclave.  To  add  to  their  discomfiture,  in  the  midst  of 
their  deliberations,  a  messenger  arrived  from  the  court, 
"  positively  forbidding  them  to  proceed  to  any  definite  sen- 
tence against  W^ickliffe."  Thus,  a  second  time,  was  the 
prey  delivered  from  the  jaws  of  the  devourer. 


JOHN   WICKLIFFE.  153 

These  threatening  dangers,  and  these  narrow  escapes, 
rather  inflamed,  than  cooled  the  ardor  of  the  Reformer.  He 
boldly  advocated  a  thorough  reform  of  the  church  ;  and  de- 
clared his  willingness  to  sufl^er  and  die,  if  necessary,  in  or- 
der to  promote  this. 

The  death  of  pope  Gregory  XI,  which  occurred  the  next 
year,  1378,  and  the  notorious  papal  schism,  occasioned  by 
the  election  of  two  popes,  as  successors  to  Gregory,  saved 
Wickliffe,  for  some  time,  from  further  molestation.  Their 
holinesses  were  too  much  occupied  in  forging  and  fulminat- 
ing thunderbolts  against  each  other,  to  pay  much  attention 
to  the  English  heretic.  This  interval  of  rest  from  persecu- 
tion, was  diligently  employed  by  Wickliffe  in  writing  and 
circulating  tracts  and  books,  in  which  the  corruptions  of  the 
clergy  and  the  aniichristian  character  of  popery  were  un- 
sparingly exhibited. 

But  the  great  work  of  Wickliffe  during  these  years  of  rest 
from  papal  persecution,  (1379 — 1381)  and  that  which  did 
more  than  all  his  other  labors  to  promote  the  truth,  and  to 
open  the  eyes  of  the  nation  to  the  antichristian  character  of 
the  entire  hierarchy,  and  which  has  handed  down  to  pos- 
terity the  name  of  this  great  man  in  the  brightest  halo  of 
glory,  was  the  translation  of  the  entire  Bible  into  the  ver- 
nacular language  of  the  country. 

John  Wickliffe  undoubtedly  deserves  the  honor  of  having 
given  to  his  country  the  first  complete  translation  of  the 
Scriptures  in  the  English  language.*  With  great  personal 
labor,  and  by  the  aid  of  learned  assistants,  he  wrote  out  an 
entire  English  version  of  the  Sacred  Word.     Copies  of  this 

^  The  reader  will  find  this  point  ably  discussed  and  satisfactorily 
settled  in  the  sixth  chapter  of  Le  Bas'  "  F^ife  of  Wiclif."  Usher 
supposed  one  English  version  to  have  been  made  as  early  as  1290. 
— London  Encyc.  Art.  English  Bible.  Bat  this  opinion  is  not  now 
generally  entertained. 


154  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

were  multiplied  by  transcribers— for  there  was  no  printing 
in  those  days,  and  the  "  poor  priests,"  as  Wickliffe's  preach- 
ing disciples  were  called, — scattered  them  over  the  king- 
dom. To  the  Scriptures  the  Reformer  appealed  for  the 
truth  of  his  doctrines ;  and  men  were  everywhere  urged 
to  search  the  Scriptures  and  "  see  if  these  things  were  so." 
The  minions  of  the  hierarchy  were  in  the  terrors  of  death 
when  they  saw  this  light  streaming  through  the  land. 
They  hated  the  light,  because  their  deeds  were  evil ;  and 
they  would  not  come  to  it,  lest  their  deeds  should  be  re- 
proved. WicklifTe  was  denounced  as  a  sacrilegious  wretch, 
who  had  presumed  to  rend  the  veil  from  the  holy  of  holies, 
and  expose  the  secrets  of  God's  honor  to  the  unhallowed 
gaze  of  the  profane  multitude.  For  centuries  the  reading 
of  the  Bible,  by  the  common  people,  had  been  prohibited. 
A  needless  exercise  of  papal  impiety,  to  be  sure,  when  the 
Sacred  Treasure  was  locked  up  in  a  language  unknown  to 
the  mass  of  the  people  ;  and  when  the  scarcity  and  expense 
of  a  single  copy  was  such  as  to  defy  the  ability  of  nine  hun- 
dred and  ninety-nine  men  in  a  thousand  to  procure  the  pro- 
hibited book.*  Still  the  prohibition  was  a  fair  exhibition  of 
papal  principles ;  and  should  not  be  forgotten  by  the  friends 
of  the  Bible.  But  while  the  clergy  declaimed  against  the 
impious  version,  the  "  poor  priests"  multiplied  and  scat- 
tered "  the  seed  of  the  word  ;"  and  the  poor  people,  so 
long  doomed  to  endure  "  a  famine  of  the  word  of  God," 
devoured  the  bread  with  great  avidity  ;  and,  like  the  honey 

*  Some  notion  may  be  formed  of  the  difficulty  of  getting  a  copy 
of  the  Bible  before  Wickliffe's  translation  appeared,  from  the  fact 
that,  although  his  versions  were  multiplied  beyond  any  previous 
precedent,  and  scattered  over  every  part  of  the  kingdom — yet  a 
copy  of  his  New  Testament  alone,  cost  from  £30  to  £40,  or  from 
133  to  177  dollars,  Federal  money. — See  Lond.  Encyc.  Art.  Scrip- 
tures. 


JOHN  WICKLIFFE.  155 

tasted  by  Jonathan  in  the  wood,  it  enlightened  the  eyes  of 
all  who  ate  of  it.  It  enabled  them  to  see,  not  only  the  cor- 
rupt and  antichristian  character  of  the  entire  system  of 
popery,  to  which  they  had  so  long  been  dupes  and  willing 
slaves, — but  it  taught  them  also  the  corruption  of  their  own 
natures,  and  their  need  of  the  washing  of  regeneration.  It 
proved  to  the  people  of  England,  what  h  did  to  the  children 
of  Israel,  when,  in  the  days  of  Josiah  "  the  book  of  the 
law"  was  discovered  among  the  rubbish  of  the  temple,  and 
was  brought  out  and  "  read  in  their  ears" — the  means  of 
an  extensive  revival  of  pure  religion  in  the  nation. 

WicklifTe,  profiting  by  the  example  of  the  Man  of  Sin, 
reared  up  numerous  preachers  of  his  doctrines,  and  sent 
them  forth,  as  the  mendicant  orders  had  at  first  gone — 
or  rather  as  Christ's  disciples  first  went  forth — with  their 
staves  in  their  hands,  and  the  sacred  word  in  their  bosoms, 
preaching  everywhere  that  men  should  repent  and  turn 
from  their  vanities  to  the  worship  of  the  only  living  and 
true  God,  and  to  the  exercise  of  faith  in  this  only  Savior 
of  man  and  intercessor  with  God — Jesus  Christ  the  right- 
eous. 

And  so  wonderfully  successful  were  these  preachers,  that 
the  ancient  English  Chroniclers  tell  us,  that  one  half  of  the 
inhabitants  of  the  kingdom  in  a  short  time  became  Lollards 
or  Wickliffites. 

The  Last  Days  of  Wickliffe. 
We  are  now  approaching  the  end  of  the  good  man's 
eventful  life.  His  last  days,  if  his  best  days,  were  not  the 
most  peaceful.  Though  worn  down  by  incessant  labor, 
and  harassed  by  opposition  and  persecution,  and  admon- 
ished by  repeated  attacks  of  sickness — he  still  manifested 
no  disposition  to  cease  from  his  labors  ;  he  seemed  resolved 


156  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

to  die  in  the  harness.  During  the  last  three  years  of  his 
life,  his  mind,  his  tongue— when  he  could  speak — and  his 
pen,  were  incessantly  busy  in  the  great  work  to  which  he 
had  consecrated  his  life— the  reform  of  the  church.  "  His 
search  into  the  Scriptures,  and  into  ecclesiastical  antiqui- 
ty,"* opened  the  eyes  of  the  Reformer  to  see  more  and 
more  of  the  anti-scriptural  character  of  the  entire  hierarchal 
system  of  those  days.  He  boldly  attacked  the  wealth,  and 
pride,  and  pomp,  and  ornaments  of  the  established  order. 
His  thundering  artillery  threatened  the  utter  overthrow  of 
the  ancient  fortress  of  popery  itself. 

Hitherto  Wickliffe  seems  to  have  enjoyed  the  protection 
and  patronage  of  the  court ;  and  God  had  used  this  to  keep 
at  bay  the  bulls  of  Rome.  But  now,  John  of  Gaunt,  openly 
forsook  his  old  and  faithful  friend.  Le  Bas  attributes  this 
to  the  doctrine  about  this  time  (1381)  advanced  by  Wick- 
liffe respecting  the  sacramental  symbols,  viz.  that  "  the  con- 
secrated host  we  see  upon  the  altar,  is  neither  Christ  nor 
any  part  of  him,  but  an  effectual  sign  of  him  ;  and  that  tran- 
substantiation,  indentification,  or  impanation,  rest  upon  no 
scriptural  ground." 

A  more  probable  solution  of  this  matter  may  be  found  in 
the  fact,  that  Wickliffe's  doctrines  were  beginning  to 
threaten  the  English^  as  well  as  the  Romish  hierarchy. f 
The  duke  of  Lancaster,  the  earl  marshal  of  England,  and 
other  noblemen,  were  ready  to  support  the  Reformer,  so 
long  as  his  labors  tended  to  break  down  the  despotic  and 
destructive  power  of  the  pope  over  the  kingdom  ;  but  when 
his  labors  began  to  threaten  a  complete  reformation  in  the 

*  Hume, 
t    See  a  valuable  article   upon  "  Congregational  Dissenters,"  in 
the  London  and    Westminster   Review  for  October,  1837.  Ameri- 
can Ed.  Vol.  IV.  No.  1. 


JOHN  WICKLIFFE.  157 

polity  of  the  church,  then  courtiers  were  among  the  first  to 
cry — "  HoJd^  enough  V 

What  Wickliffe's  ecclesiastical  views  were,  we  shall  pre- 
sently consider.  And,  in  the  course  of  this  history,  we 
shall  have  occasion  to  remark  the  same  courtly  policy  in 
staying  the  hands  of  later  reformers.  For  the  present,  we 
will  pass  on  to  notice  the  immediate  effects  of  the  things  to 
which  allusion  has  just  been  made. 

The  protection  o^  the  great  being  withdrawn,  the  whole 
pack, — 

"  The  little  do^s  and  all, 
Tray,  Blanch,  and  Sweet-heart  *  * 
Mastiff,  grey-hound,  mongrel  grim, 
Hound,  or  spaniel,  brach,  er  lym  5" 

— The  pope,  the  king,  the  archbishop,  the  bishops,  the  men- 
dicants, and  friars — were  immediately  in  full  chase.  Their 
noble  game  was  driven  from  the  covert  of  Oxford  by  order 
of  the  king  ;  the  archbishop  procured  the  condemnation  of 
his  doctrines  in  a  synod  of  the  clergy ;  the  bishops,  by 
*'  letters  mandatory"  to  their  abbots  and  priors,  clergy  and 
ecclesiastical  functionaries,  required  the  immediate  suppres- 
sion of  the  impious  and  audacious  doctrines  of  the  Reformer. 
In  addition  to  all  this,  parliament  was  petitioned  to  provide 
a  remedy  against  "  the  innumerable  errors  and  impieties  of 
the  Lollards ;"  a  royal  ordinance  was  surreptitiously  ob- 
tained by  the  clergy,  empowering  "  the  sheritfs  of  counties 
to  arrest  such  preachers  and  their  abettors,  and  to  detain 
them  in  prison,  until  they  should  justify  themselves  accord- 
ing to  law,  and  reason  of  holy  Church  ;"  and,  to  cap  the 
climax,  the  pope  himself  summoned  the  heretic  to  appear 
at  Rome,  and  give  account  of  himself  to  the  vicar  of  God. 
Well  might  the  good  man  have  adopted  the  words  of  his 
master  :  "  They  gaped  upon  me  with  their  mouths,  as  a 
14 


158  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ravening  and  a  roarino;  lion."  *  *  "  Dogs  have  compassed 
me  :  the  assennbly  of  the  wicked  have  enclosed  me."* 
Amidst  the  gathering  storm,  the  good  man  labored  on. 
When  driven  from  the  university,  he  found  shelter  among 
his  affectionate  parishioners  at  Lutterworth.  Here  he 
preached  and  wrote  with  unflinching  boldness  and  untiring 
activity.  But  the  servant  was  doing  his  last  work  for  his 
much  loved  master.  God  protected  him  and  preserved  his 
life  while  he  had  work  for  him  to  do  ;  but,  having  finished 
his  task,  he  was  soon  to  be  called  home.  The  incessant 
labor  of  twenty  years,  had  shattered  the  earthly  tabernacle, 
and  brought  upon  the  faithful  laborer  a  premature  old  age  ; 
and  finally,  produced  a  paralysis  of  all  his  powers,  which 
terminated  his  invaluable  life  on  the  31st  day  of  December, 
Anno  Domini  1384.  When  the  summons  came  he  was 
where  a  soldier  would  choose  to  die — at  his  post.  He  fell 
as  a  warrior  would  wish,  on  the  field  of  battle,  sword  in 
hand.  He  was  in  his  church,  administering  the  sacrament 
when  a  paralytic  shock  deprived  him  of  speech  and  motion. 
He  lingered  two  days ;  and  then,  as  we  have  the  best  rea- 
son to  believe — slept  in  Jesus.  "  Admirable,"  exclaims 
the  quaint  and  candid  Fuller,  "  that  a  hare  so  often  hunted, 
whh  so  many  packs  of  dogs,  should  die,  at  last,  quietly  sit- 
ting in  his  form."t 

Thus  died  John  Wicklifie ;  the  most  remarkable  man  of 
his  age  ;  and  one  of  the  most  distinguished  reformers  of 
any  age.  His  name  and  works  have  been  the  subjects  of 
the  most  unqualified  abuse  by  the  violent  Papist ;  and  of 
the  5e»ii*hearty  praise  of  the  devoted  churchman. J     The 

*  Psalm  22:  13,  IS).  t  Quoted  by  Le  Bas,  p.  2C5. 

X  I  refer  particularly  to  Mr.  Milner,  whose  extended  notice  of 
Wickliffe's  life  and  labors  is  open  to  many  objections;  and  in  some 
points  is  manifestly  unjust  and  injurious  to   the   memory  of  the 


wickliffe's  doctrines.  159 

Congregational  dissenter,  while  he  adnriits  that  WicklifTe 
was  subject  to  human  infirmities,  and  like  other  men  liable 
to  error  ;  that  the  truth  gradually  opened  upon  his  mind  ; 
and  that,  even  to  his  death,  some  of  the  shreds  of  popery- 
may  have  clung  around  him  ; — while,  I  say,  he  admits  all 
this,  still  he  must  revere  John  WicklifTe  as  "  the  modern 
discoverer  of  the  principles  of  Congregational  Dissent.'''' 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

ECCLESIASTICAL  OPINIONS  OF  WICKLIFFE. 

Having  claimed  WicklifTe  as  a  remote  ancestor  of  the 
denomination  whose  history  occupies  these  pages,  it  will  be 
expected  that  I  give  more  fully  than  has  yet  been  done, 
the  grounds  on  which  this  claim  rests.  In  this  attempt,  I 
shall  labor  under  the  disadvantage  of  having  but  a  very 
small  portion  of  the  Reformer's  own  writings  to  draw  from  ; 
and  of  being  obliged  to  depend  chiefly  upon  the  represen- 
tations of  those  who  had  no  partiality  for  apostolic  simplici- 
ty in  church  polity,  for  my  information.  Still,  I  think  it 
may  be  made  to  appear,  that  the  relationship  between  the 
Reformer  of  the  fourteenth  century,  and  the  Reformers  of 
the  seventeenth — is  something  more  than  imaginary. 

1.  The  prominent  doctrine  of  Wickliffe's  creed  which 
allies  him  to  modern  Congregationalists  was — The  all- 

SUFFICIENCY  OF  THE  ScRIPTURES. 

Reformer.  In  reading  Milner's  account,  one  is  almost  provoked 
to  say— He  damns  WicklifTe  with  faint  praise.  Prof.  Le  Bas'  work 
is  a  very  different  affair  ;  he  corrects  "  the  historian  of  the  Church" 
in  several  particulars  ;  he  might  have  done  more. 


160  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

His  habit  of  ''^postulating,''^  or  expounding  a  portion  of 
Scripture  to  his  parishioners  on  the  Sabbath,  instead  of 
*'  declaring,''''  or  preaching  a  sermon  from  a  single  text,  or 
uttering  an  oration  upon  a  particular  subject — is  a  decisive 
evidence  of  his  high  regard  for  the  Scriptures.  His  trans- 
lation of  the  Bible  into  English,  is  a  still  stronger  evidence 
of  his  veneration  for  the  inspired  writings. 

Add  to  the  above,  the  Reformer's  own  words  upon  this 
point.  In  one  place  he  says:  "Scripture  is  the  faith  of 
the  church,  and  the  more  it  is  known  in  an  orthodox  sense 
the  better."* 

What  he  considered  an  "orthodox  sense,"  so  far  as  reli- 
gious doctrines  were  concerned,  would  now  be  called — a 
Cahinistic  sense.  His  views  of  church  polity  will  present- 
ly appear. 

In  his  tract  entitled—"  Why  many  Priests  have  no  Bea- 
efices," — he  uses  the  following  language :  "  Also  then 
shulde  priests  study  holy  writt,  and  be  devout  in  their 
prayers,  and  not  be  carried  away  with  new  officers,  and 
mo  [more]  sacraments  than  Christ  used,  and  his  apostles, 
that  taiighten  [taught]  us  all  iruth.^''f 

The  connection  in  which  the  italicised  words  stand  to  the 
other  part  of  the  sentence,  shows  conclusively,  that  Wick- 
lifTe  supposed  that  Christ  and  his  apostles,  taught  us  all  ihe 
truth  respecting  the  order,  as  well  as  the  faith  of  the 
church.  This,  it  will  be  remembered,  is  the  first  great 
principle  of  the  Congregational  system — "  The  supreme 
authority  and  entire  sufficiency  of  the  Scriptures."! 

Pierce,  in  his  Vindication  of  Dissenters,  gives  the  following 

*  *'  Great  Sentence,"  quoted  by  Milner,   Appendix  to  second 
volume,  Phil.ed.  1835. 

t  Milner,  Cent.  XIV.  Chap.  3. 

I  See  Le  Bas'  «  Life  of  Wiclif,"  pp.  190,  192,  219,  220,. 


wickliffe's  doctrines.  161 

summary  of  Wickliffe's  opinions.  "  All  human  traditions, 
which  are  not  taught  in  the  gospel,  are  superfluous  and 
wicked — 'Tis  not  lawful  for  a  Christian,  after  the  full  pub- 
lication of  the  law  of  Christ,  to  devise  himself  any  other 
laws  for  the  government  of  the  church.  If  the  ceremonies 
of  the  old  law  were  to  cease  under  the  law  of  grace,  be- 
cause of  their  burdensomeness  and  number,  how  much  more 
should  such  traditions  of  men,  as  are  devised  without  any 
scripture  foundation,  cease  in  the  time  of  the  law  of  grace."* 

2.  Another  principle  of  Congregationalism,  developed  in 
Wickliffe's  writings,  relates  to  the  character  of  those  who 
should  constitute  the  church  of  Christ. 

He  defines  the  church  to  be — "  The  Congregation  of  just 
men,  for  whom  Christ  shed  his  blood. "f  In  another  place, 
"  he  calls  the  church  an  assemhly  of  predestinated  per- 
sons.""f 

Fuom  such  passages,  which  abound  in  Wickliffe's  writ- 
ings, we  are  authorized  to  infer  that  he  considered  apparent 
piety  an  indispensible  pre-requisite  to  real  church  member- 
ship. 

3.  In  reference  to  the  government  and  worship  of  the 
church.  He  maintained  that  Christ  is  the  only  head  of  the 
church  ;  and  that  "  no  true  man  will  dare  to  put  two  heads, 
lest  the  church  be  monstrous."|  And,  "  that  we  must 
practice  and  teach  only  the  laws  of  Christ ;"  *  *  "  that  all 
human  traditions  are  superfluous  and  sinful  ;  that  mystical 
and  significant  ceremonies  in  religious  worship  are  unlaw- 
ful;—and  that,  to  restrain  men  to  a  prescribed  form  of 
prayer  is  contrary  to  the  liberty  granted  by  God  ;"§ — that 

*  See  Palmer's  Protest.  Dissenter's  Catechism,  App.  No.  3,  20th 
Edition. 

t  Milner,  Appendix  ut  sup. 

X  Le  Bas,  p.  299,  from  Vaughan.  Vol.  II.  p.  273. 

§   Neal's  Hist.  Puritans,  Vol.  I,  p.  52. 

14* 


162  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATrONALrSM. 

"  the  short  and  trifling  confirmation  performed  by  Caesa- 
rean  prelates,  together  with  its  pompous  mummery,"  was 
"  probably  introduced  by  the  instigation  of  the  devil,  for 
the  purpose  of  deluding  the  people,  and  advancing  the  im- 
portance and  dignity  of  the  Episcopal  order."* 

4.  Upon  the  subject  of  church  officers,  the  language  of 
Wickliffe  is  very  explicit.  "  Unum  audacter  assero — one 
thing  I  boldly  assert,  that  in  the  primitive  church,  or  in  the 
time  of  the  apostle  Paul,  two  orders  of  clergy  icere  thought 
sufficient^  viz.  Priest  and  Deacon  ;  and  1  do  also  say,  that 
in  the  time  of  Paul,  fuit  idem  jjresbpier  atque  episropus — a 
priest  and  a  bishop  were  one  and  the  same  ;  for  in  those 
times  the  distinct  orders  of  Pope,  Cardinals,  Patriarchs, 
Archbishops,  Bishops,  Archdeacons,  Officials,  and  Deans, 
were  not  invented."! 

"  By  the  ordinance  of  Christ  priests  and  hishops  were 
all  one;  but  afterwards,  the  emperor  (Constantino,)  made 
bishops  lords,  and  priests  their  servants  ;  and  this  was 
the  cause  of  envy,  and  quenched  much  charity. "t 

"  There  was,  he  said,  but  tico  species  of  orders,  namely, 

*  I  quote  the  language  of  Le  Bas,  who  professes  to  give  the  sense 
of  Wickliffe,  in  his  "  Triologus,"  B.  IV.  Chap.  14.  In  giving  an- 
account  of  this  ''  almost  fanatical  extravagance"  of  Wickliffe,  the 
professor  loses  his  temper  ;  and  seems  disposed  to  doom  such  "  in- 
tractable and  self-willed  spirits"  to  be  '<  demolished"  by  the  "  in- 
comparable irony  of  Hooker."  How  much  trouble  and  vexatioa 
our  high-church  brethren  would  have  been  saved,  were  it  as  easy 
to  satisfy  the  '•  intractable  Congregationalist,  that  he  is  "  demol- 
ished," as  it  is  to  convince  the  lofty  churchman  of  this,  to  him, 
ver}^  desirable  fact.  But  our  brethren  must  bear  with  us  for  not 
"  playing  dead"  when  we  feel  all  alive. 

t  Neal,  Vol.  I.  p.  51,  note.  Also  an  article  on  ''  Congregation- 
al Dissenters"  in  the  London  and  Westminster  Review,  Oct. 
1837,  Vol.  IV.  No.  1.  American  ed. 


wickliffe's  doctrines.  163 

that  of  deacons,  and  of  priests.  The  church  militant  ought 
not  to  be  burdened  with  three;  nor  was  there  any  ground 
for  it."* 

And  again  :  "  From  the  faith  of  Scripture,  it  seems  suf- 
ficient that  there  should  be  presbyters  and  deacons,  holding 
the  state  and  office  which  Christ  assigned  them  ;  since  it 
appears  that  all  other  orders  and  degrees  have  their  origin 
in  the  pride  of  Caesar.'''f 

From  these  quotations  it  is  perfectly  evident  that  Wick- 
liffe's  "  powerful  and  independent  mind"  rejected  and  dis- 
carded all  the  pomp,  and  ceremony,  and  orders,  and  de- 
grees, of  an  hierarchal  establishment :  and  these  extracts 
leave  little  room  to  doubt  "  whether  he  would  have  alto- 
gether discarded  the  Episcopal  order,  had  he  been  allowed 
to  carry  into  effect  his  own  principles  of  reformation."! 

It  was  not,  I  humbly  conceive,  because  he  was  "  pleased 
to  hood- wink  his  own  knowledge"— as  his  Episcopal  biog- 
grapher  ventures  to  insinuate — that  this  great  man  rejected 
these  "  human  rights  and  new  shadows  or  traditions  in  re- 
ligion." He  had  opened  his  eyes  upon  the  simple  and 
precious  truth  of  God's  word  ;  he  had  taken  this  as  the  man 
of  his  counsel,  as  his  unerring  guide.  This  he  regarded  as 
all-sufficient  to  teach  the  church  of  Christ  the  faith  and  the 
order  that  she  should  observe  and  love.  It  was  his  strict 
adherence  to  the  grand  Protestant  principle — "  The  Scrip- 
ture alone  is  truth— the  Scripture  alone  is  the  faith  of  the 
church" — that  induced  this  "  Morninor  Star"  of  the  Refor- 


*  Milner,  Cent.  XIV.  Chap.  3.  t  Le  Eas,  p.  300. 

t  See  Le  Bas,  p.  2!)f).  The  Professor  intimates  his  belief  that 
he  might  have  done  so;  though  he  thinks  it  possible  that  VVick- 
liffe  might  have  retained  the  Episcopal  order  «'  as  a.  convenient  and 
useful,  appointment."  But  how  could  he  have  retained  this  con- 
sistently with  his  principles  ^ 


164  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

mation  to  reject  all  unscriptural  and  dangerous  innovations 
in  the  order  and  worship  of  the  church  of  Christ.  And,  it 
surely  was  presuming  pretty  strongly  on  the  intelligence 
(I  should  say  the  ignorance)  of  his  readers,  for  Prof.  Le 
Bas  to  assert  that  "  from  the  time  of  the  apostles  to  t!ie  days 
in  which  he  [WicklifTe]  lived,  no  other  form  of  government 
but  the  Episcopal  had  ever  been  known  to  the  Christian 
church."  Such  an  assertion  may,  for  aught  I  can  say, 
pass  current  in  the  "  East  India  College,  Herts  f  but,  sure 
I  am,  that  Wickliffe''3  "  unum  audacter  assero,"  will  pass 
quite  as  current  in  other  circles.  That  what  is  now  known 
as  the  Episcopal  form  of  government,  i.  e.  diocesan — had 
no  existence  in  the  church  until  a  long  period  afier  the 
apostles— is  maintained  by  some  of  the  most  learned  writers 
upon  ecclesiastical  antiquities.  This  being  the  state  of  the 
question,  it  would  have  been  more  becoming,  were  a  Cam- 
bridge fellow  to  have  been  less  positive  in  his  assertion. 

5.  To  the  foregoing  statements  and  illustrations  of  Wick- 
lifTe's  ecclesiasiical  opinions,  which  seem  to  entitle  him  to 
a  place  among  the  modern  discoverers  of  the  principles  and 
doctrines  of  Congregationalists — might  be  added  one  or  two 
other  particulars,  as  :  "  That  it  was  heretical  for  a  prelate 
to  excommunicate  any  one  without  knowing  him  to  be 
already  excommunicated  by  God."  *  This  opinion  is  at- 
tributed to  him  by  his  enemies.  I  find  no  particular  notice 
of  it  by  his  biographers  ;  and  do  not  consider  it  sufficient, 
of  itself,  to  bear  a  very  strong  inference  :  this  much,  how- 
ever, we  may  venture  to  say — It  reminds  us  of  the  doctrine 
of  Christ  upon  the  subjectof  excommunication,  as  presented 
in  Matt.  18:  15 — 20,  where  he  teaches,  as  Congregational- 
ists suppose,  that  no  man  should  be  excommunicated,  and 
cast  from  ihe  church,  "  as  a  heathen  man  and  a  publican," 

*  Le  Bas,  p.  239. 


JOHN    WICKLIFFE.  165 

unless  he  has,  in  the  judgment  of  the  church,  forfeited  his 
Christian  character.* 

Another  point  on  which  the  teachings  of  WickHffe  are 
manifestly  in  accordance  with  the  views  of  Congregational- 
ists  of  the  present  day,  relates  to  the  support  of  the  clergy. 

This  he  strenuously  maintained  should  be  done  by  the 
voluntary  offerings  of  the  'people ;  and  furthermore,  that 
these  offerings  should  be  so  moderate  as  neither  to  pamper 
the  pride,  nor  encourage  luxurious  indolence  in  the  clergy  ; 
but  simply  to  furnish  them  a  comfortable  support,  and  to 
enable  them  to  be  ensamples  to  their  flocks  in  deeds  of 
charity.  Upon  this  point  he  says  :  "  Priests  owen  [ought] 
to  hold  themselves  paide  with  food  and  cloathing,  as  St. 
Paul  techeth ;  and  if  they  have  more,  it  is  poor  men's 
goods. "t  *  *  He  insisted,  moreover,  that  even  this 
moderate  support  should  be  continued  to  the  clergy, 
only  on  condition,  of  their  continued  faithfulness  to  their 
clerical  duties-l     He  maintained  that,  "  If  ministers,  in  the 

*  To  avoid  misapprehension,  it  may  be  well  to  state,  that  this 
opinion  does  not  forbid  our  churches  to  discipline  members  who 
have  not  forfeited  their  Christian  standing.  We  suppose  that 
churches  are  bound  to  discipline,  and  if  necessary,  to  withdraw 
fellowship  from  "  every  brother  that  walketh  disorderly  {aTuxTOjc^, 
out  of  order),  i.  e.  contrary  to  the  order  and  the  rules  of  discipline 
established  by  the  church  ;  but,  every  such  departure  from  the  or- 
der of  the  church  would  not  necessarily  be  a  forfeiture  of  Christian 
character.  A  church,  satisfied  upon  this  point, — that  the  erring 
brother  had  not  forfeited  his  standing  as  a  Christian — and  yet,, 
finding  themselves  unable  to  reclaim  him,  might  withdraw  fellow- 
ship from  him  as  a  brother,  on  the  ground  that  two  cannot  walk 
together  except  they  be  agreed — while  they  did  not  reckon  him 
"  as  a  heathen  man  and  a  publican,"  that  is,  as  a  man  destitute  of 
the  spirit  of  Christ. 

t  See  his  Tract,  entitled,  "  Why  many  Priests  have  no  Benefi- 
ces," quoted  entire  in  Milner. 

I  Le  Bas,  p.  1«4. 


166  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

execution  of  their  office,  do  not  act,  both  by  word  and  ex- 
ample, as  God  commandeth,  their  people  are  not  bound 
to  pay  them  tithes  and  offerings."  And,  further,  that 
"  When  the  principal  cause  for  which  tithes  and  offerings 
should  be  paid  does  not  exist,  the  payment  of  tithes  should 
cease."* 

His  biographer  tells  us  :  "  That  Wickliffe  seems  to  have 
regarded  all  the  endowments  of  the  church  as  a  manifest 
departure  from  the  original  spirit  of  the  Christian  system." 
And,  adds  :  "  Had  he  been  allowed  to  remodel  our  eccle- 
siastical polity,  he  would,  probably,  have  made  the  clergy 
dependent  on  the  voluntary  offerings  of  the  people. "t  In 
another  place  he  tells  us  :  "  According  to  his  views,  the 
priesthood  may  be  considered  as  holding  their  property  un- 
der a  tenure,  liable  to  forfeiture  by  such  gross  abandon- 
ment of  their  duties,  as  must  defeat  the  purposes  for  which 
the  Christian  ministry  was  instituted."! 

These  doctrines,  though  sufficiently  offensive  to  his  Epis- 
copal biographer,  are  nevertheless,  nowise  inconsistent  with 
what  Congregationalists  regard  as  sound  and  scriptural 
truth. 

In  has  been  objected  to  the  Reformer,  that  his  conduct, 
in  deriving  his  support  through  the  usual  hierarchal  chan- 
nels, was  inconsistent  with  his  own  doctrine.  But  let  it  be 
remembered,  that  he  had  no  power  to  alter  the  existing 
laws  of  the  kingdom  ;  that  he  took  care  so  to  demean  him- 
self as  to  make  all  the  offerings  of  his  own  people  for  his 
support,  free-will  offerings;  and  that  he  appropriated  to  his 
own  use  only  so  much  of  the  income  of  his  rectory  as  was 
needful  to  support  a  very  humble  style  of  living  ; — wearing, 
for  the   most  part,  a  coarse  woollen   gown,  and  travelling 

*  Milner,  Cent.  XIV.  Chap.  3. 

t  Le  Bas,  p.  269.  ?  Ibid.  p.  1G4. 


JOHN    WICKLIFFE.  167 

about  his  parish,  staff  in  hand,  and  bare-footed  ;  so  that,  in 
truth,  he  rather  exceeded  his  principles  in  the  rigidity  of  his 
life,  than  fell  short  of  them  ;  for  he  insisted  that  the  laborer 
was  worthy  of  his  hire  ;  that  the  preacher  of  the  gospel 
ought  to  be  comfortably  supported,  but  not  luxuriously.* 

■*  Wickliffe  was  the  contemporary  ancT  personal  friend  of  "  the 
father  of  English  poetr}',  and  the  brightest  ornament  of  Edward's 
[ill.]  comi.''— Geoffrey  Cliaucer.  The  poet  is  said  to  have  been  a 
Wickliffite,  and  to  have  suffered  for  his  principles.  <<  A  recent 
intelligent  writer,"  says  the  London  and  Westminister  Review, 
"recognizes  Wickliffe  in  the  character  drawn  by  the  poet,  of  the 
parish  priest." 

"  A  good  man  there  was  of  religion, 
He  was  a  poor  parson  of  a  town. 
But  rich  he  was  of  holy  thought  and  werk 
H"e  was  also  a  learned  man,  a  clerk, 
That  Criste's  gospel  trewely  wolde  preche  ; 
His  parishens  devoutly  wolde  he  tech. 
JBenigne  he  was,  and  wonder  diligent, 
And  in  adversitie  full  patient ; 
And  swiche  he  was  yproved  often  sithes, 
Ful  loth  were  him  to  cursen  for  his  tithes, 
But  rather  wolde  he  geven  out  of  doute 
Of  his  offriug  and  eke  of  his  substance. 
He  could  in  letle  thing  have  suffisance  ; 
Wide  was  his  parish  and  houses  far  asonder, 
But  he  ne  left  nought  for  no  rain  ne  thunder. 
In  sickeness  and  in  rnischeefe  to  visite 
The  ferrest  in  his  parish,  moche  and  lite,     . 
Upon  his  fete  and  in  his  hand  a  staff". 
But  it  [if.?]  were  any  person  obstinat, 
What  so  he  were  of  highe  or  low  estat. 
Him  wolde  he  snibben  sharply  for  the  nones." 

See  Hippisley's  <  Chapters  on  Early  Eng.  Literature.'  See  also, 
Le  Bas,  p.  19S,  1  have  followed  Hippisley  in  the  orthography  ex- 
cept in  the  first  two  lines,  that  the  reader  may  have  a  specimen  of 
the  English  of  the  fourteenth  century. 


168  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

What  has  now  been  said  of  Wickliffe,  will  enable  the 
reader  to  estimate  the  character  and  opinions  of  this  great 
Reformer.  He  exerted  a  powerful  influence  in  preparing 
the  way  for  the  Reformation,  which  took  place  in  England 
some  ages  after  he  had  been  gathered  to  his  fathers.  His 
writings,  many  of  which  were  small  tracts,  were  exceed- 
ingly voluminous,  and  were  scattered  by  hundreds — yea 
thousands — all  over  the  kingdom.  These  breathed  into  the 
nation  a  spirit  as  adverse  to  popery,  as  it  was  favorable 
to  thorough  Protestantism. 

It  cannot  be  questioned,  that,  had  Wickliffe  been  permit- 
ted to  reform  the  English  church  as  he  wished,  he  would 
have  laid  the  axe  at  the  root  of  the  tree.  He  would  never 
have  been  contented  with  rejecting  the  mother^  and  adopt- 
ing the  daughter.  Had  his  brawny  arm  been  ennployed  in 
cleaning  the  Augean  stable  of  the  English  prelates,  he 
would  have  made  clean-riddance  of  all  the  filth  of  popery. 
There  would  have  been  none  of  that  timid,  temporizing, 
trimming  work  which  was  seen  in  later  reformers.  He 
would,  undoubtedly,  have  taken  the  beautifully  simple 
model  of  an  apostolic  church  for  his  pattern  ;  and  have 
constructed  the  outward  order,  as  well  as  the  religious 
faith  of  the  church,  after  the  same  divine  pattern,  Milner's 
estimate  of  the  Reformer's  notions  of  "  external  reforma- 
tion," seem  clearly  to  intimate  his  belief  of  this.  He  tells 
us,  that  he  would  have  "  erred  in  the  extreme  of  excess," 
had  he  been  permitted  to  carry  out  his  notions  of  church 
reform.  Le  Bas  evidently  rejoices  with  trembling  to  think 
what  the  church  of  England  escaped,  by  not  having  been 
reformed  by  the  strong  arm  of  Wickliffe.  He  says  :  "  Had 
he  succeeded  in  shaking  the  established  system  to  pieces, 
one  can  scarcely  think,  without  some  awful  mUgivings^  of 
the  fabric  which,  under  his  hand,  might  have  risen  out  of 


JOHN    WICKLIFFE.  109 

ihe  ruins."  And  the  ground  of  these  "  awful  misgivings'''* 
of  the  good  churchman  are  very  clearly  exhibited,  when  he 
says  : — "  If  the  reformation  of  our  church  had  been  con- 
ducted by  Wickliffe,  his  work,  in  all  probability,  would 
nearly  have  anlicipaied  the  labors  of  Calvin ;  and  the 
Protestantism  of  England  might  have  pretty  closely  resem- 
bled the  Protestantism  of  Geneva." 

And  when  he  adds,  that,  as  one  fruit  of  this  reformation 
— "  Episcopal  government  might  have  been  discarded  ;" 
one  who  has  contemplated  the  manifold  evils  of  that  "  Epis- 
copal government "  which  the  Reformation  has  entailed 
upon  England,  can  hardly  refrain  from  exclaiming,  O  that 
Wickliffe  had  succeeded  in  his  scriptural  labors  ! 

And  when  the  professor  speaks  of  another  of  the  evils 
which  might  have  resulted  from  the  execution  of  Wickliffe's 
plan  of  reformation — "  the  clergy  might  have  been  con- 
signed to  a  degrading  [!]  dependence  on  their  flocks" — 
no  good  Congregationalist  can  sympathize  at  all,  with  his 
"  awful  misgivings."  Least  of  all,  can  any  of  the  thou- 
sands, who  for  centuries  have  groaned  under  the  oppres- 
sive burden  of  the  English  national  church  establishment. 

As  a  confirmation  of  this  general  train  of  remark  respect- 
ing the  reformatory  principles  of  WicklifTe,  and  as  a  good 
specimen  of  the  style  in  w  hich  the  lovers  of  *'  The  Establish- 
ment "  allow  themselves  to  speak,  I  will  quote  one  para- 
graph more  from  Le  Bas  :  "  Had  WicklifTe  flourished  in 
the  sixteenth  century,  it  can  hardly  be  imagined  that  he 
would  have  been  found  under  the  banners  of  Cranmer  and 
of  Ridley.  Their  caution,  their  patience,  their  moderation, 
would  scarcely  have  been  intelligible  to  him  ;  and  rather 
than  conform  to  it,  he  might,  perhaps,  have  been  ready,  if 
needful,  to  perish^  in  ihe  gainsaying  [! !]  of  such  men  as 
Knox  or  Cartwright.  At  all  events,  it  must  plainly  be  con- 
15 


170  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

fessed,  that  there  is  a  marvellous  resemblance  between  the 
Reformer,  with  his  poor  itinerant  priests,  and  at  least  the 
better  part  of  the  Puritans,  who  troubled  our  Israel  [our 
Jezebel]  in  the  days  of  Elizabeth  and  her  successors.  The 
likeness  is  sufficiently  striking,  almost  to  mark  him  out  as 
their  prototype  and  progenitor ;  and  therefore  it  is,  that 
every  faithful  son  of  the  church  of  England  must  rejoice 
with  trembling,  that  the  work  of  her  final  deliverance  was 
not  consigned  to  him."* 

The  almost  contemptuous  style  in  which  this  writer  is 
pleased  to  speak  of  the  Puritans  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
deserves  special  notice.  These  men  who  are  sneered  at  as 
gainsayers,  by  an  English  churchman  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  are  the  very  men  whom  an  infidel  historian  is  con- 
strained to  honor  as  the  preservers  of  the  precious  spark  of 
English  liberty  ! — Yes,  and  of  English  Protestantism  too. — 
JBut  more  of  this  anon. 

Such  was  John  Wicklifie — in  character  and  in  principle 
-^-a  great  man,  and  a  good  man.  A  reformer  of  the 
purest  intentions,  and  of  the  soundest  general  principles* 
The  Bible  was  the  lamp  by  which  he  sought  for  truth.  The 
Bible  was  the  rod  by  which  he  would  have  measured  every- 
thing pertaining  to  the  church  ;  this  was  the  standard  to 
which  he  would  have  reduced  the  outward  form  and  order, 
and  indeed,  the  entire  polity  of  the  church.  He  would  not 
have  exposed  the  church  of  England  to  the  taunt  of  one 
of  her  most  eloquent  statesment — of  having  "  an  Arminian 
clergy  and  a  popish  liturgy."  He  w^ould  have  left  none 
of  the  elements  of  popery  in  the  constitution  and  ceremo- 
nies of  the  church  ;  he  would  have  purged  out  thoroughly 
all  that  leaven  of  impurity,  which,  to  this  very  day,  is  work- 
ing death  in  the  English  church. |     The  Oxfordism  which 

*  Le  Bas  '•  Life  of  Wiclif,  p.  325.  t   Chatham. 

I  It  has  recently  been  asserted  in  the  public  prints,  that  it  is  no 


THE    LOLLARDS.  171 

now  threatens  her  peace — yea,  her  very  Protestantism, — 
would  have  found  no  hiding  places  in  the  plain,  and  simple, 
and  scriptural  buildings  which  Wickliffe  would  have  reared. 

The  time,  however,  had  not  then  arrived — when  the 
English  nation  were  fully  prepared  for  so  great  a  deliver- 
ance. Neither  indeed,  has  it  yet  fully  come.  But  the  day 
of  her  redemption  is,  we  trust,  drawing  on — yea,  beginning 
to  dawn. 

The  manner  in  which  the  principles  of  Wickliffe  were 
treated,  and  his  followers  persecuted,  must  receive  atten- 
tion before  we  enter  upon  other  scenes  to  which  the  labors 
of  the  Reformer  were  a  prelude. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  LOLLARDS.* PERSECUTION. 

It  has  been  repeatedly  intimated  in  the  course  of  the  pre- 
ceding pages — that  Wickliffe  was  not  alone  in  the  recep- 
tion of  the  principles  which  have  been  ascribed  to  him. 

uncommon  thing  to  find  crucifixes  and  pictures  of  the  Virgin  Mary, 
in  the  roonjs  of  the  students  of  Oxford  University. 

*  TJie  term  Lollard,  or  Lollhard,  appears  to  have  been  a  title  of 
contempt,  affixed  to  such  dissenters  as  were  specially  averse  to 
the  impositions  of  popery.  In  other  words,  it  was  a  nickname 
given  the  friends  of  God,  by  the  worshippers  of  the  pope. 

Mosheim  supposes  that  the  name  was  derived  from  the  German 
<'  iullen,  lollen,  or  lallen,  and  the  well  known  termination — hard, 
which  is  subjoined  to  so  many  German  words."  The  word  lollen, 
or  Iullen,  signifies  in  German,  to  sing  icith  a  low  voice ;  hence  our 
English   word  lull;  as  to  lull  asleep.     A  Lullcn,  therefore,  was  a 


172  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

At  the  head  of  his  disciples  must  be  placed  the  itinerant 
preachers,  who  had  been  instructed  by  the  Reformer,  and 
sent  forth  to  proclaim  his  doctrines,  in  every  part  of  the 
kingdom.  These  he  called  by  the  humble  and  familiar 
name  of — "  Poor  Priests.^''  Some  of  them  were  persons 
of  education,  and  talents,  and  eloquence  ;  others  were  more 
distinguished  for  their  humble  piety,  and  fervent  zeal  in 
the  cause  of  truth,  than  for  their  literary  acquisitions. 
Whatever  their  pretensions  to  education,  and  however  dif- 
ferent their  former  habits  of  living,  they  all  adopted  the 
same  methods  for  propagating  the  doctrines  of  their  in- 
structor. Furnished  with  a  portion  of  the  Sacred  Text,  and 
perhaps  a  few  of  the  popular  tracts  of  the  Reformer,  they 
took  their  staves  and  went  forth,  preaching  everywhere  the 
truths  of  the  Gospel  and  the  principles  of  the  Reformation. 
In  those  days,  as  in  earlier  times, — the  common  people 
heard  the  Gospel  most  gladly, — and  some  of  the  priests, 
too,  were  obedient  unto  the  faith.  Even  some  of  "  Cae- 
sar's household"  received  the  truth  in  the  love  of  it. 

The  Romanists  tell  us,  that  the  people  were  flattered  by 
being  made  judges  of  the  truth  ;  the  poor  priests  always  ap- 
pealing to  the  Scriptures,  for  proof  of  what  they  taught. 
A  precious  confession  this.  It  forcibly  reminds  us  of  what 
took  place  some  fourteen  hundred  years  before  John  Wick- 
liffe's  time ;  when  certain  poor  priests  were  sent  forth  to 
preach  a  new   doctrine   to  a  corrupt   hierarchy  ;  which, 

singer — a  Lullenhard,  or  Lollard,  was  one  inuch  engaged  in  sing- 
ing. And  when  applied  to  a  religionist,  it  was  equivalent  to  one 
much  employed  in  religious  worship — much  engaged  in  singing 
God's  praises.  When  applied  to  heretics,  as  a  nickname,  it  wa.s 
equivalent  to  hypocrite,  or  one  who  made  great  pretensions  to  piety  ; 
just  as  the  term — ^' praying-o?ics"  or  '^  gudly-oncs,"  is  used  to  this 
day. — See  a  long  note  on  this  subject  in  Mosheim,  Cent.  Xl  V.  P.  II, 
Chap.  2,  note  G8. 


THE    LOLLAKDS.  173 

when  the  people  heard,  and  dpubted,  ihey  "  Searched  the 
Scriptures  daily,  whether  these  things  were  so."  The 
result  in  both  cases  was  the  same — "  Therefore,  many  of 
of  them  believed;" — Acts  17:  11,  12.  The  prevalence  of 
these  "revolutionary  principles"  alarmed  the  pope  and 
his  bishops,  and  their  clergy.  And  well  they  might  be 
alarmed  ;  for,  we  are  told  :  If  you  met  two  persons  in  the 
high-way,  one  of  them,  you  might  be  sure  was  a  Lollard. 
Nor  were  these  opinions  confined  to  the  vulgar;  Oxford, 
if  we  may  believe  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  "  was 
tainted  with  novel  and  damnable  Lollardism,  to  the  intol- 
erable and  notorious  scandal  of  the  University." 

To  suppress  this  growing  heresy,  the  clergy,  after  em- 
ploying in  vain,  the  bulls  of  the  pope  and  the  mandatories 
of  the  bishops,  surreptitiously  obtained  an  act  of  parlia- 
ment, "  requiring  sheriffs  to  apprehend  the  preachers  of 
heresy  and  their  abettors."*  The  Commons  protested 
against  this  act,  as  fraudulently  obtained,  without  their  con- 
sent or  knowledge.  The  clergy,  nevertheless,  had  art  and 
power  sufficient  to  prevent  the  repeal  of  the  act,  "  which 
remains  this  day  upon  the  statute  book  ;"t  and  is  memora- 
ble in  English  history  as  the  first  act  by  which  the  secular 
arm  was  made  the  instrument  of  clerical  persecution.  This 
law  was  made  as  early  as  1381,  in  the  life  time  of  Wick- 
lifTe.  It  was,  however,  so  unpopular  with  the  Commons, 
and  withal,  so  fraudulently  obtained,  that  the  bishops  were 
too  politic  to  press  its  immediate  application.  They  were 
hoping  for  better  days  ;  and  such  days  were  near  at  hand. 

In  1388,  commissioners  were  appointed  in  different 
counties,  to  hunt  up  and  seize  all  "  the  little  books  "  of 
WicklifTe.     And  a  royal  proclamation  was  made,  forbid- 

*  Hume's  Richard  II.  Chap.  17.    Neal's  Hist.  Pur,  Vol.  I.  p.  54. 
t  Hume. 

15* 


174  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ding  all  persons  to  use  these  "  pernicious  writings,"  or  to 
maintain  the  "  scandalous  opinions  which  they  contained."* 

Still  the  Lollards  multiplied  ;  and  about  the  year  1394> 
pope  Boniface  IX,  thought  it  necessary  to  address  an  ur- 
gent request  to  the  king  and  the  church  of  England,  "to 
root  out  and  destroy  the  maintainers  of  doctrines,  subver- 
sive of  the  state,  both  civil  and  ecclesiastical." 

In  the  year  1399  the  incompetent  Richard  II.  was  de- 
throned and  murdered  by  ihe  ambitious  and  powerful  duke 
of  Lancaster,  the  son  of  Wickliffe's  patron  and  protector, 
who  usurped  the  throne,  under  the  title  of  Henry  IV. 

Coming  to  the  throne  by  violence,  and  destitute  of  any 
just  title,  Henry  thought  it  necessary  to  court  the  favor  of 
the  clergy  by  giving  them  their  heart's  desire,  in  the  form 
of  a  law  against  heretics.  By  this  law  the  bishops  were 
empowered  to  try,  imprison,  and  fine  at  discretion,  all 
heretical  persons.  "  Those  that  refused  to  abjure  their 
errors,  or  after  abjuration  relapsed,  were  to  be  delivered 
over  "to  the  secular  power,  and  the  mayors,  sheriffs,  or  bai- 
lifTs  were  to  be  present  (if  required)  when  the  bishop  or  his 
commissary  passed  sentence,  and  after  sentence,  they  were 
to  receive  them,  and  in  some  high  place  burn  them  to  death 
before  the  people."t 

This  was  the  first  penal  enactment  against  heretics,  which 
disgraced  the  English  statute  book.  It  was  aimed  against 
the  Lollards  ;  and  opened  that  bloody  campaign  which,  for 
centuries,  continued  to  destroy  such  as  endeavored  to  con- 
form to  the  apostolic  model  in  their  faith  and  worship. 

This  law  was  made  in  1401  ;  and  its  fiery  penalty  was 
soon  inflicted  on  one  of  the  disciples  of  the  illustrious  Re- 
former. 

*  Le  Bas,  p.  360,  361. 

i  Neat's  Puritans,  Vol.  I.  p.  54  ;  Hume's  Henry  TV. 


THE  LOLLARDS.  175 

That  the  reader  may  have  at  one  view  all  the  machinery 

of  persecution,  before  the  details  of  its  operations  are  con- 
sidered, I  will,  for  the  present,  pass  over  the  short  and 
turbulent  reign  of  Henry  IV,  to  that  of  his  son  and  succes- 
sor, the  warlike  Henry  V. 

"  The  Lollards,"  says  Hume  in  his  account  of  this  reign, 
"  were  every  day  increasing  in  the  kingdom,  and  were  be- 
come a  formed  party,  which  appeared  extremely  dangerous 
to  the  church,  and  even  formidable  to  the  civil  authority."* 
If  the  Lollards  were  formidable  and  dangerous,  it  was  sim- 
ply because  they  were  opposed  to  the  usurpations  and  ty- 
ranny of  both  church  and  state.  To  ward  off  these  formi- 
dable dangers,  the  reigning  powers  of  the  realm  thought  it 
necessary  to  give  additional  edge  to  the  laws  against  the 
lovers  of  scriptural  truths.  Accordingly,  in  the  beginning 
of  Henry's  reign— i.  e.  about  the  year  1418 — a  new  law 
was  passed  against  the  Lollards  or  Wickliftites — "  That 
they  should  forfeit  all  the  lands  they  had  in  fee  simple,  and 
all  their  goods  and  chattels  to  the  king.  All  state  officers, 
at  their  entrance  into  office,  were  sworn  to  use  their  best 
endeavors  to  discover  them  ;  and  to  assist  the  ordinaries 
[i.  e.  the  judges  of  the  bishop's  court]  in  prosecuting  and 
convicting  them." 

The  peculiar  violence  of  this  law  appears  from  the  fact, 
that  it  was  levelled  against  all  who  should  presume  to  read 
the  Scriptures  in  the  English  tongue  ;  which  was  then 
termed  "  Wicleue's  Learning.''''  It  was  enacted  :  "  That 
whatsoever  they  were  that  should  read  the  Scriptures  in  the 
mother  tongue,  they  should  forfeit  land,  catel,  lif,  godes, 
from  theyr  heyres  forever,  and  so  be  condempned  for  here- 
tykes  to  God,  enemies  to  the  crowne,  and  most  errant  trai- 
tors to  the  lande."t 

*  Henry  V.  Chap.  19. 

t  See  Neat's  Pur.  Vol.  I.  p.  55  and  note  ;  Hume's  Hen.  V. 


176  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

But,  bitter  as  was  the  cup  of  persecution  already  forced 
upon  the  miserable  Lollard,  there  were  new  ingredients  to 
be  added  by  the  hand  of  the  infamous  Chicheley,  arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury.  In  1416,  this  "  firebrand  of  the  age" 
drew  up  and  promulgated  an  ecclesiastical  law,  requiring 
"  all  sufflagans  and  archdeacons,  with  their  officials  and 
commissaries,  to  make  inquisition,  twice  in  every  year,  af- 
ter persons  suspected  of  heresy.  Wherever  reputed  here- 
tics were  reported  to  dwell,  three  or  more  of  the  parish 
were  compelled  to  take  an  oath  that  they  would  certify  to 
the  suffragans,  or  their  officers,  what  persons  were  heretics, 
who  kept  private  conventicles,  who  differed  in  life  and  man- 
ners from  the  common  conversation  of  the  faithful,  who 
had  suspected  books  in  the  vulgar  tongue,  or  were  conver- 
sant with  persons  suspected  of  error.  On  such  informa- 
tion, process  was  to  issue  against  the  accused,  who  were  to 
be  delivered  over  to  the  secular  court,  or  imprisoned  till  the 
next  convocation."* 

"  By  this  accursed  ordinance,"  says  Le  Bas,  "  the  hor- 
rors of  the  writ  for  burning  heretics  were  completed.  It 
set  up  an  inquisition  in  every  parish.  It  sent  terror  and 
distrust  into  every  family.  Every  dwelling  was  haunted 
by  discord  and  suspicion  :  so  that  a  man's  bitterest  foes 
were  often  those  of  his  own  household  and  blood.  And  the 
fruits  of  this  flagitious  system  were,  that  multitudes  were 
consigned  to  the  dungeon  or  the  stake,  by  the  treachery,  or 
the  weakness  of  their  nearest  kindred,  or  their  dearest 
connections." 

Such  were  the  merciless  laws  under  which  the  Wickliff- 
ites  groaned  for  more  than  a  hundred  years  ;  or  to  the  time 
of  the  Reformation,  in  the  days  of  Henry  VIII. 

In  addition  to  the  encouragement  given  the  clergy  to  per- 

*  Wilkins's  Concilia,  Vol.  III.  p.  378,  quoted  by  Le  Bas,  p.  369. 


THE  LOLLARDS.  177 

secute  the  Lollards,  by  these  violent  English  laws  ;  further 
support  was  afforded  them  by  the  doings  of  the  infamous 
Council  of  Constance.*  This  council  began  its  sessions  in 
the  year  1414,  and  continued  them  thi^ee  years  and  six 
months.  Its  professed  object  was  to  reform  the  church. 
Its  real  object  was  to  prevent  any  substantial  reformation. 
While,  therefore,  the  managers  of  this  council  deluded  the 
world  by  their  pretensions,  they  diligently  employed  them- 
selves in  condemning  all  the  reformatory  doctrines  which 
were  abroad ;  particularly  those  of  Wickliffe,  Huss,  and 
Jerome  of  Prague.  The  two  latter,  the  council  condemned 
to  death  ;  and  enjoyed  the  exquisite  satisfaction  of  seeing 
them  burned  to  ashes,  with  their  writings. 

On  Wickliffe,  who  was  considered  the  master  of  these 
Bohemian  reformers,  and  from  whose  writings  they  had 
doubtless  derived  many  of  their  opinions — the  council  could 
not  lay  their  bloody  hands  ;  since,  for  thirty  years,  the  good 
man's  remains  had  slept  in  the  grave.  They  were  obliged, 
therefore,  to  content  themselves  with  condemning  his  wri- 
tings, and  ordering  them  to  be  burned  ;  and  directing  that 
"  his  body  and  bones,  if  they  might  be  discerned  and  known 
from  the  bodies  of  other  faithful  people,  should  be  taken 
from  the  ground,  and  thrown  far  away  from  the  burial  of 
any  church,  according  to  the  canon  laws  and  decrees." 

This  impolent  decree  could  not  be  carried  into  immedi- 
ate execution  :  but  after  the  lapse  of  thirteen  years  it  was 
fulfilled  to  the  letter ;  yea;  and  beyond  the  letter.  The 
chancel  of  Lutterworth  was  ransacked,  the  remains  of 
Wickliffe  (if  perchance  they  did  not  get  those  of  some  other 
person)  were  thrown  out,  consumed  by  fire,  and  their  ashes 
cast  in  a  neighboring  brook.     "  The  brook,"  says  Fuller, 

*  The  reader  will  find  an  extended  account  of  this  Council  in 
Milner,  Cent.  XV.  Chap.  2.  Comp.  Mosheim,  Cent.  XV.  P.  II. 
Chap.  2,  and  Russell,  Modern  Europe,  Vol.  1,  Let.  43. 


178  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

"  did  convey  his  ashes  into  Avon  ;  Avon  into  Severn  ;  Se- 
vern into  the  narrow  seas  ;  they  into  the  main  ocean.  And 
thus  the  ashes  of  WickHffe  are  the  emblem  of  his  doctrine, 
which  now  is  dispersed  all  the  world  over." 

Persecution  of  the  Lollards. 

Having  presented  to  the  reader  the  instruments  of  cleri- 
cal vengeance  which  were  successively  prepared  for  the 
punishment  of  the  \\'ickliffifes,  we  may  now  look  over  the 
field  of  carnage  which  they  made  in  England. 

How  Wickliffe  himself  was  harassed  and  hunted  by  his 
enemies,  we  have  already  seen.  It  was  not  to  be  expected 
that  his  disciples  should  fare  better  than  their  master  ;  and, 
under  all  the  circumstances  of  the  case,  even  so  well.  Ac- 
cordingly we  read,  that  "  Utred  Bolton  and  John  Ashwer- 
by,  fellows  of  Oriel  college,  were  both  much  troubled  and 
persecuted  for  preaching  and  promoting  Wickliffe's  doc- 
trine, Anno  Christi,  1380. 

"  John  Ashlon,  fellow  of  IMerton  college,  was  persecuted 
and  at  last  condemned  to  perpetual  imprisonment  for  the 
same.  Anno  Christi,  1382. 

"  Walter  Brute  of  JMerton  college  was  persecuted  by  the 
bishop  of  Hereford,  Anno  Christi,  1390. 

"  Peter  Pateshal,  who  had  faithfully  preached  this  doc- 
trine at  London,  and  in  the  court,  was  forced  by  persecu- 
tion to  fly  into  Bohemia  for  refuge,  about  the  same  time. 

"  Henry  Crump,  doctor  of  divinity  in  Oxford,  was  first  an 
adversary  to,  but  afterwards  convinced  and  converted  by 
Wickliffe's  doctrine,  preached  it  boldly  ;  for  which  lie  was 
persecuted  by  the  bishops,  who  forced  him  to. fly  into  Ire- 
land ;  yet  then,  also,  was  he  long  imprisoned  by  a  bishop, 
about  the  year  1392. 

*'  William  Sawtree,  a  divine  of  Oxford,  and  parson  of  St. 


THE  LOLLARDS.  179 

Sith's  church  in  London,  was  imprisoned,  degraded,  and  at 
last  burnt  by  Thomas  Arundel,  archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
Anno  Chrisli,  1400  [or  1401]." 

Savvtree,  or  Sautre,  was  a  Wickliffite,  and  was  the  pro- 
to-martyr  of  the  English  church.  He  was  the  first  victinn 
of  the  law  of  Henry  IV,  mentioned  page  174. 

"  William  Swinderby,  of  King's  college  in  Oxford,  hav- 
ing for  a  good  while  taught  the  truth  at  Leicester,  was  at 
last  apprehended  and  compelled  to  recant ;  but  after  awhile 
repenting,  and  receiving  new  strength  from  God,  he  re- 
newed his  doctrine,  and  was  burnt  at  Smithfield,  Anno 
Chrisli,  1407. 

"  William  Thorpe,  fellow  of  Queen's  college  in  Oxford, 
was  apprehended  for  the  same,  examined,  imprisoned,  and 
there  at  last,  secretly  put  to  death  by  Arundel,  archbishop 
of  Canterbury,  Anno  Christi,  1410."* 

Two,  at  least,  of  those  mentioned  by  Clarke,  as  sufferers 
for  their  Wickliffism,  were  of  the  number  of  the  Reformer's 
"  poor  priests," — Thorpe  and  Swinderby.  Several  others 
are  mentioned  by  Le  Bas,  some  of  whom,  in  the  hour  of 
peril,  proved  false  to  their  principles.  Multitudes,  however, 
including  priests,  and  nobility,  and  common  people,  both 
men  and  women,  were  found  faithful  even  unto  death. 

The  martyrologist  tells  us  of  thirty-nine  persons,  and 
at  their  head  Sir  Roger  Acton,  who  were  put  to  death  at 
onetime,"  in  St.  Giles's  in  the  fields  for  the  truth  ;"  being 
"  hanged  with  fire  under  them,  whereby  they  died  a  double 
death"t— Anno  Christi,  1413. 

"  Clarke's  Martyrology,  Chap.  55,  Fol.  ed. — I  have  taken  the  lib- 
erty to  change  the  order  in  which  the  last  two  figures  stand  in 
Clarke  :  it  is  there  1401  ;  it  doubtless  should  be  1410.  It  ought 
also  to  be  stated,  that  in  reference  to  the  end  of  Thorpe  and 
Swinderby,  some  doubts  have  been  raised. — See  Le  Bas,  Chap.  10. 
t  Chap.  56. 


180  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Between  the  years  1414  and  1416  Clarke  names  about 
TWENTY  Others, — clergymen  and  laymen, — who  were  ar- 
rested, tried,  imprisoned,  hanged  and  quartered,  or  burnt, 
for  their  Lollardism. 

Lord  Cohham. 

Among  the  sufferers  of  these  times  (1413 — 1417)  no 
one  was  more  distinguished  than  Sir  John  Oldcastle,  Lord 
Cobham.  This  nobleman  was  not  less  renowned  for  his 
bravery,  than  for  his  learning,  his  numerous  virtues,  and 
his  humble  piety.  Henry  IV.  and  his  successor  honored 
him  with  their  confidence  :  he  was  also  a  favorite  among 
the  people.  But  he  was  a  VVickliffite.  "  At  great  ex- 
pense, he  had  collected,  transcribed,  and  dispersed  the 
works  of  Wickliffe  among  the  common  people  without 
reserve  ;  and  it  was  well  known,  that  he  maintained  a  great 
number  of  itinerant  preachers  in  many  parts  of  the  country, 
particularly  in  the  dioceses  of  Canterbury,  Rochester,  Lon- 
don and  Hereford."  * 

These  acts  of  "  Lollardy,"  were  sufficient  to  blast  the 
fair  fame  of  Oldcastle.  Here  was  an  instrument  of  "  dam- 
nable Lollardism,"  which  could  not  be  tolerated  :  this  open 
patron  of  heresy  must  be  put  out  of  the  way.  There  were 
laws  enough  to  do  this  ;  but  the  difficulty  was,  to  turn  the 
edge  of  these  laws  upon  one  so  near  to  the  king,  and  so 
high  in  popular  favor.  But  archbishop  Arundel  was  not  a 
hound  that  could  easily  be  drawn  from  the  scent  of  blood. 
Having  matured  his  plans  in  a  Convocation  of  the  clergy, 
he  proceeded  cautiously  to  sound  the  king  ;  and,  at  the 
same  time,  to  infuse  the  poison  of  distrust  into  the  monarch's 
mind.     He  succeeded  in  engaging  Henry  to  look  into  the 

*  Milner,  Cent.  XV.  Chap.  1,  where  the  reader  will  find  a  long 
and  interesting  account  of  this  excellent  nobleman. 


THE  LOLLARDS.  181 

charges  against  Cobham.  The  king  undertook  to  convert 
him  from  his  heresy ;  but,  as  the  crafty  prelate  doubtless 
anticipated,  the  attempt  was  abortive.  This  failure,  of 
course,  irritated  and  alienated  the  haughty  monarch  ;  and 
induced  him  to  give  up  his  favorite  to  the  fury  of  his  perse- 
cutors. The  archbishop  immediately  cited  the  obnoxious 
nobleman  before  him.  Cobham  at  first  refused  to  appear. 
"Arundel,  in  a  rage,  excommunicated  him  for  contumacy, 
and  demanded  the  aid  of  the  civil  power  to  apprehend  him." 
Finding  resistance  vain,  Cobham  at  length  submitted,  and 
appeared  before  his  accusers  for  trial.  Here  he  displayed 
the  heroism  of  a  knight  and  the  humility  of  a  Christian 
"  He  witnessed  a  good  confession."  He  feared  not  to  pro 
fess  his  faith,  and  to  defend  his  principles.  And  when,  af 
ter  wearisome  and  repeated  examinations  before  his  inquisi- 
tors, he  was  told — "  You  must  either  submit  to  the  ordL 
nances  of  the  church,  or  abide  the  dangerous  consequences.' 
The  gallant  old  nobleman  firmly  replied — "  My  faith  is 

FIXED,  DO  WITH  ME  WHAT  YOU  PLEASE." 

Sentence  was  immediately  passed  upon  him  ;  denounc- 
ing him  as  "  an  incorrigible,  pernicious,  and  detestable  here- 
tic," and  giving  him  over  to  the  tender  mercies  of  the  secu- 
lar power  ;  or,  in  other  words — dooming  him  to  be  hanged 
and  burned. 

This  sentence,  though  for  a  time  avoided  by  the  fortunate 
escape  of  Cobham  from  prison,  was  finally  executed  under 
circumstances  of  revolting  cruelty.  His  enemies  accused 
him  of  traitorous  designs  upon  his  prince  ;  a  price  was  set 
upon  his  head  ;  and  after  about  three  and  a  half  years  of 
flight  and  concealment,  Cobham  was  discovered  and  ar- 
rested;  and,  though  both  his  legs  had  been  broken  in  the 
violence  of  his  seizure,  "  he  was  dragged  into  St.  Giles' 
fields,  with  all  the  insult  and  barbarity  of  enraged  supersti- 
16 


l6Sl  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

tion  ;  and  then,  both  as  a  traitor  and  a  heretic,  he  was  sus- 
pended alive  in  chains,  upon  a  gallows,  and  burned  to 
death,"*  "  with  the  praises  of  God  in  his  mouth,  and  the 
spirit  of  his  Savior  in  his  heart,"*  A.  D.  1417. 

It  is,  perhaps,  needless  to  add,  that  the  charge  of  treason 
against  lord  Cobham  and  his  associates,  has  but  little  evi- 
dence to  support  it.  Hume,  to  be  sure,  gives  full  credit  to 
it  :t  this,  perhaps,  was  to  be  expected  from  a  historian  who 
is  ever  willing  to  believe  any  bad  thing  of  a  man  of  piety. 
Russell  (Modern  Europe,  Let.  45)  agrees  with  Hume  :  but 
his  account  of  the  matter — notwithstanding  his  reference  to 
original  authorities — seems  little  else  than  an  abridgement 
of  Hume's.  The  learned  and  indefatigable  martyrologist, 
Fox,  utterly  repudiates  this  charge  of  treason  against  Cob- 
ham.  So  does  Rapin,  and  Turner,  and  Milner,  and  Le  Bas. 
Turner  says  :  "  It  is  all  a  series  of  surmise  and  rumor,  of 
alarm  and  anticipation.  That  any  plot  was  formed  there  is 
no  evidence,  and  the  probability  is,  that  artful  measures 
were  taken  to  alarm  the  mind  of  the  king  into  anger  and 
cruelty,  by  charges  of  treason  and  rebellion  and  meditated 
assassination."  |  Milner  thinks  it  probable  that  Henry 
himself  finally  discredited  these  charges  against  Oldcastle 
and  the  Lollards.  The  general  deportment  of  these  people 
gave  the  lie  to  all  such  accusations.  They  are  described, 
says  Milner,  "  as  having  been  always  peaceable  and  sub- 
missive 10  authority." 

But,  the  accusations  of  the  clergy  had  their  designed  ef- 
fect :  they  destroyed  the  life  of  the  hated  nobleman,  and 
kindled  anew  the  flames  of  St.  Giles'  against  the  unfortunate 
followers  of  the  "  Gospel  Doctor." 

*  Milner  and  Le  Bas.  t  Henry  V.  Chap.  19. 

t  Quoted  by  Le  Bas,  p.  367.  See  also  Milner's  Life  of  Lord 
Cobham. 


THE  LOLLARDS.  183 

Still  "  mightily  grew  the  word  of  God  and  prevailed." 
About  the  year  1422,  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury  wrote 
to  pope  Martin,  "  that  the  Wicklivists  in  England  were 
grown  to  be  so  nnany,  that  they  could  not  be  suppressed 
without  an  army.''''  * 

Had  it  been  a  few  centuries  earlier,  we  might  have  to 
record  the  bloody  deeds  of  some  Simon  Montfort ;  and  a  re- 
petition of  the  horrid  tragedy  of  Beziers.t  But  it  was  too  late 
for  the  holy  vicar  and  his  willing  servants  to  carry  on  their 
murders  on  the  same  magnificent  scale  which  the  12th  and 
13th  centuries  had  allowed.  They  were  compelled  to 
slake  their  thirst  for  blood,  by  butchering  men  by  scores  in- 
stead of  thousands.     But  they  did  "  what  they  could." 

"  Between  the  years  1428  and  1431,"  says  the  martyr- 
ologist,  "  there  were  about  the  number  of  one  hundred 
AND  TWENTY  men  and  women  in  Norfolk  and  Suffolk, 
brought  and  examined  before  the  bishop  of  that  diocese, 
for  the  profession  of  the  christian  faith,  some  of  which  es- 
caped more  easily,  but  most  of  them  were  cruelly  handled, 
and  some  of  them  burnt." 

The  poor  Lollards  found  some  respite  from  clerical  per- 
secution during  the  tumultuous  reigns  of  Henry  VI,  Ed- 
ward IV.  and  V,  and  Richard  III ;  a  period  of  English  his- 
tory renowned  for  the  bloody  civil  wars  between  the  houses 
of  York  and  Lancaster — both  of  which  aspired  to  the 
throne,  and  by  turns  attained  it.  These  conflicting  claims, 
by  which  the  whole  nation  was  divided  into  two  great  par- 

*  Clarke,  Chap.  56. 

t  Montfort  was  the  Popish  commander  of  the  armies  of  crusaders 
against  the  Albigenses.  Beziers  was  one  of  their  cities  which  was 
taken  by  storm,  in  which  23,000  persons,  without  respect  to  age  or 
sex,  were  indiscriminately  slaughtered.— See  Jones's  Hist,  of  the 
Christian  Church,  Vol.  II.  Chap.  5.  Lond.  ed. 


184  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ties,  for  thirty  years  (from  1455  to  1485),  filled  the  king- 
dom with  deeds  of  violence  and  crime,  and  deluged  it  in 
blood.  The  success  of  Henry,  earl  of  Richmond,  heir  of 
the  house  of  Lancaster,  and  the  defeat  and  death  of  Rich- 
ard III,  on  the  field  of  Bosworlh,  at  length  terminated  the 
bloody  struggle.  The  conqueror  ascended  the  throne,  un- 
'der  the  title  of  Henry  VII ;  and,  espousing  in  marriage  the 
lady  Elizabeth,  heiress  of  the  house  of  York,  united  the 
claims  of  both  parties  under  one  crown  ;  secured  undisputed 
possession  of  the  throne  of  England,  and  gave  peace  to  his 
harassed  subjects. 

This  prince  seems  to  have  emulated  the  persecuting  deeds 
of  his  ancestors,  Henry  IV.  and  V.  Like  them  he  courted 
the  favor  of  the  pope  and  his  clergy,  by  burning  the  worthy 
follower-s  of  Wickliffe.  "  To  the  Lollards,"  (so  were  God's 
people  nicknamed)  says  Fuller,  "he  was  more  cruel  than 
his  predecessors."  * 

An  aged  priest,  "  so  firmly  rooted  in  the  heresies  of 
Wickliffe,  that  all  the  clerks  and  doctors  of  Canterbury 
were  unable  to  remove,  or  even  to  shake  him,"t  seems  to 
have  been  the  first  victim  of  this  reign.  The  king  himself, 
undertook  to  convert  him,  as  his  namesake  had  lord  Cob- 
ham  ;  and  though  the  royal  disputant  is  said  to  have  si- 
lenced and  conquered  his  opponent,  yet  the  aged  man  was 
burnt  to  death  for  his  heresy. 

.  Joanna  Baughton,  a  widow  of  quality,  of  fourscore  years 
'of  age,  was  another  memorable  victim  of  this  reign  of  cru- 
elty. "  She  was  accused  of  heresy  in  holding  many  of 
Wickliffe's  opinions.  Persuasions  and  threats  both  failing 
to  draw  her  from  the  truth,  her  gray  hairs  were  given  to  the 
flames ;  and  when  she  was  in  the  flames,  she  cried  unto 

*  Quoted  by  Le  Bas.  t  Fox,  quoted  by  Le  Bas. 


THE  LOLLARDS.  185 

God  to  receive  her  soul  ;  and  so  quietly  yielded  up  the 
ghost." 

Another  godly  confessor,  one  William  Tylsworth,  was 
burned  to  death  for  his  heresy,  in  a  fire  which  his  own 
daughter  was  compelled  to  kindle. 

Thomas  Chase,  after  being  imprisoned,  and  manacled, 
and  almost  starved,  was  "  strangled  and  pressed  to  death 
in  the  prison,"  by  order  of  bishop  Woodbine.* 

These  examples  must  suffice  as  illustrations  of  the  demo- 
niacal cruelty  with  which  the  followers  of  scriptural  and 
primitive  truth  were  persecuted  during  the  reign  of  Henry 
VII.  and  the  early  part  of  the  reign  of  Henry  Vlll.t 
"  The  extent  of  havoc,  inflicted  by  this  awful  infatuation  of 
the  clergy  and  the  sovereign,  may  be  tolerably  estimated, 
even  from  the  somewhat  sportive  hyperbole  of  a  corre- 
spondent of  Erasmus  ;  who  declares,  that  the  frequency  of 
executions  at  Smithfield  had  advanced  the  price  of  fire- 
wood in  the  neighborhood  of  London. "J 

But  the  day  of  retribution  was  drawing  on.  The  cry  of 
the  oppressed  had  entered  the  ears  of  the  God  of  Sabaoth. 
"  The  Beast  "  was  about  to  receive  a  deadly  wound  ;  and 
from  a  source  least  anticipated.  —  An  account  of  this  must 
be  reserved  for  another  chapter. 

*  Clarke. 

t  Le  Bas,  p.  380. 

X  The  reader  will  find  in  Clarke's  English  Martyrology,  numC' 
rous  cases  of  equally  cruel  persecution  during  the  first  twenty 
years  of  Henry  8th's  reign,  with  those  mentioned  under  the  reign 
of  Henry  VH. 


16* 


186  HISTORy  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 


CHAPTER  X. 

ERA  OF  THE  ENGLISH  REFORMATION REIGN  OF  HENRY   VIII. 

1509—1547. 

Henry  VII.  died  April  22d,  1509  ;  and  was  immediately 
succeeded  by  his  son  Henry  VIII.  The  joy  of  the  people 
at  the  accession  of  this  prince  was  equalled  only  by  their 
satisfaction  at  the  death  of  his  tyrannical  and  miserly  father. 

Few  monarchs  have  commenced  their  reign  under  aus- 
pices more  favorable,  or  with  promises  more  flattering. 
Few  reigns  have  been  mere  eventful  to  the  English  nation. 
Uniting  in  his  own  person  the  conflicting  claims  of  York 
and  Lancaster ;  carefully  instructed  in  the  literature  of  the 
day  ;  distinguished  for  his  dexterity  in  all  the  manly  exer- 
cises of  the  age  ;  in  the  vigor  of  youth  ;  with  a  beautiful 
countenance,  and  an  attractive  address  ;  with  a  government 
firmly  established  by  the  vigorous  arm  of  his  father  ;  with 
overflowing  coffers  ;  with  a  united  and  obedient  people  ;  — 
what  more  could  a  monarch,  or  a  nation  desire  of  outward 
advantages.  Yet,  all  these  had  Henry  VIII,  on  ascending 
the  English  throne. 

Soon  after  the  settlement  of  the  government  under  its 
new  head,  Henry  proceeded  to  solemnize  a  marriage,  which 
had  been  previously  arranged  by  his  father,  with  Catha- 
rine, the  widow  of  Arthur,  the  late  prince  of  Wales,  Hen- 
ry's eldest  brother.  This  event,  of  itself  so  unimportant, 
became  the  occasion  of  an  ecclesiastical  revolution  in  Eng- 
land as  wonderful  as  it  has  been  celebrated. 

The  first  twenty  years  of  Henry's  reign  furnish  few  ma- 
terials for  our  history.  LoUardism,  though  long  persecuted, 
still  survived  in  the  country,  as  "  Lollard's  tower,"  the 


THE  ENGLISH  REFORMATION.  187 

dungeon  and  the  stake  too  fully  testified.  On  these  perse- 
cutions we  need  not  dwell :  a  sufficient  sample  of  their 
character  has  been  given  in  the  preceding  chapter.  The 
events  immediately  connected  with  the  English  Reforma- 
tion, deserve  our  attention,  not  less  for  their  own  intrinsic 
importance  than  for  their  relation  to,  and  influence  upon, 
the  subsequent  history  of  Congregationalism. 

After  Henry  had  lived  with  his  queen  nearly  twenty 
years,  he  began  to  question  the  lawfulness  of  his  marriage 
with  his  brother's  widow.  He  consulted  some  of  his  coun- 
sellors, and  found  them  affected  with  similar  scruples.  He 
then  set  himself  to  study  the  schoolmen,  particularly  his 
favorite,  Thomas  Aquinas.  These  researches  confirmed 
his  doubts  :  perhaps  I  ought  to  say,  gratified  his  wishes  ; 
for,  it  is  quite  as  probable  that  the  decay  of  the  queen's 
beauty,  and  some  bodily  infirmities  with  which  she  was 
visited,  had  as  much  to  do  with  the  movements  of  the  king, 
as  his  conscientious  scruples. 

Having  formed  his  resolution,  Henry  applied  to  the  pope 
for  a  bull  of  divorce  from  Catharine,  on  the  plea  of  the  in- 
consistency of  the  marriage  with  the  canons  of  the  church 
and  the  law  of  God.  The  pope,  though  sufficiently  in- 
clined to  gratify  the  English  monarch,  dared  not  to  offend 
the  emperor  Charles  V,  the  nephew  of  Catharine,  in  whose 
power  his  holiness  then  was. 

After  six  years  of  shuffling  and  delay  on  the  part  of  the 
pope,  Henry's  impetuosity  could  no  longer  be  restrained. 
The  violence  of  his  natural  temper  had  been  greatly  in- 
flamed by  the  charms  of  Anne  Boleyn,  one  of  the  queen's 
maids  of  honor,  of  noble  birth,  and  various  attractions  ; 
whom  the  king  had  resolved  to  raise  to  his  throne.  But 
this  he  could  not  do,  without  removing  Catharine.  Her 
virtuous  and  exemplary  life  gave  him  no  ground  of  accusa- 


188  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

tion  against  her ;  and  his  only  hope  was  a  divorce,  on  the 
alleged  unlawfulness  of  the  original  union.  Finding  it 
vain  to  look  to  Rome  for  help,  Henry  was  advised,  by  Dr. 
Cranmer  of  Cambridge,  to  apply  to  the  universities  of  Eng- 
land, and  Europe  generally,  for  a  solution  of  the  questions — 
"  Whether  it  was  agreeable  to  the  law  of  God  for  a  man  to 
marry  his  brother's  wife  ?"  and  "  Whether  the  pope  could 
dispense  with  the  law  of  God?"  "  All  the  universities, 
and  most  of  the  learned  men  of  Europe,  both  Lutherans 
and  Papists,  except  those  at  Rome,  declared  for  the  negative 
of  the  two  questions."  * 

The  opinion  of  these  learned  men  was  then  laid  before 
the  parliament  and  the  convocation  of  clergy.  These  as- 
semblies obediently  concurred  with  the  opinion  of  their 
master  and  that  of  the  universities.  These  points  settled, 
Henry  no  longer  delayed.  Anne  Boleyn  was  immediately 
married  privately  to  the  king,  Nov.  14,  1532,f  and  Catha- 
rine of  Arragon  soon  after  (May  20,  1533)  solemnly  di- 
vorced, by  the  decree  of  Cranmer,  archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury. These  acts  may  be  regarded  as  the  first  capital 
stroke  towards  the  English  Reformation. 

Upon  hearing  of  these  transactions,  the  pope  and  his  con- 
clave were  filled  with  rage  ;  and  denounced  excommunica- 
tion against  the  impious  king.  Henry,  however,  was  pre- 
pared for  the  thunder-gust.  Having  gradually  prepared  the 
public  mind  for  the  announcement,  he  caused  publicly  to 
be  preached — "  That  the  pope  was  entitled  to  no  authority 

*  Neal's  Purrtans,  Vol.  1.  p.  57.  Edition  of  5  vols.  8vo.  Hume 
says:  "  Oxford  alone  and  Cambridge  made  some  difficulty." — 
Henry  VIII.  Chap.  30. 

t  Cranmer  has  been  accused  of  solemnizing  this  marriage.  But 
this,  the  archbishop  distinctly  denied.  He  says  :  "  I  myself  knew 
not  thereof  a  fortnight  after  it  was  donc^ — See  his  Letter  to  HaW' 


THE  ENGLISH  REFORMATION.  189 

at  all  beyond  the  bounds  of  his  own  diocese."  *  By  an 
act  of  parliament  it  was  further  declared — '*  that  to  speak 
against  the  pope  was  no  heresy  ;"  *  the  power  of  appoint- 
ing bishops  was  vested  in  the  king ;  the  payment  of  first- 
fruits  to  the  pope  was  abolished  ;  the  king  was  empowered 
to  call  convocations  of  the  clergy  ;  was  made  the  ultimate 
appeal  in  causes  ecclesiastical  ;  and  finally,  declared  to  be 

"  SOLE  AND  SUPREME  HEAD  OF  THE  CHURCH  OF  ENGLAND, 

NEXT  AND  iMBiEDiATELY  UNDER  Christ."!  Bold  stcps  in- 
deed for  that  age.  And,  what  is  truly  astonishing,  Henry 
had  sufficient  power  to  extort  these  concessions  from  the 
convocation  of  the  clergy,  as  well  as  from  the  parliament. 
And  what  is  yet  more  astonishing,  the  same  arbitrary  power 
compelled  the  mojiks  themselves — the  very  elite  of  the  pa- 
pal hosts — to  renounce  their  allegiance  to  their  sovereign 
lord  the  pope,  "  uno  ore  et  voce,  atque  unanimi  omnium 
et  singulorum  consensu  et  assensu" — with  one  mouth  and 
voice,  and  with  the  unanimous  consent  and  assent  of  all  and 
each  individual  | 

This  was  clipping  the  wings  ofthejwpe  with  a  vengeance. 
"  Here  was  the  rise  of  the  Reformation,"  says  Mr.  Neal. 
The  "  Act  of  Supremacy  "  by  which  Henry  was  made 
head  of  the  Church  of  England,  was  a  complete  overthrow 
of  the  Romish  power  in  that  nation.  Instead  of  Clement 
VII,  Henry  VIII.  became  virtually  pope  of  England.  In 
him  was  vested  all  power  to  correct  and  reform,  alter  and 
amend  whatsoever  seemed  needful  in  his  infallible  judg- 

kins,  quoted  from  Strype,by  bishop  Burnet,  Hist.  Ref.  Rec,  Vol.  V. 
B.  II.  P.  III.  p.  103. 

*  Hume.  t  Neal,  Vol.  1.  p.  59. 

X  See  "Renunciation  of  the  Pope's  Supremacy;  signed  by  the 
Heads  of  Six  Religious  Houses,"  in  Burnet's  History  of  the 
Reformation,  Vol.  H.  Book  H.  No.  50  of  Records. 


190  HISTOKY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ment.  This  mighty  power,  the  despot  wielded  during  the 
remainder  of  his  reign,  for  good  or  evil,  as  his  interest,  ca- 
price, or  passion  directed.  Cranmer,  archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, a  man  of  learning,  and  probity,  and  judgment,  and, 
we  may  hope,  sincere  piety ;  and  Cromwell,  secretary  of 
state,  and  afterwards  vicegerent  of  the  king,  were  Henry's 
chief  counsellors.  Both  of  these  men  had  embraced  the 
principles  of  the  Reformation  ;  and,  covertly  or  openly, 
did  what  they  could  to  stimulate  the  king  to  a  thorough  re- 
form of  the  Church  of  England. 

The  reformatory  measures  of  the  court,— such  as  they 
were — found  countenance  and  support  in  multitudes  of 
the  common  people,  and  not  a  few  of  the  clergy. 

The  Lollards,  though  so  long  the  objects  of  persecution, 
were  stiil  quite  numerous  in  the  nation.  The  progress  of 
the  Lutheran  Reformation,  on  the  continent,  had  now 
(1533 — 1535)  made  great  progress.  The  writings  of  the 
continental  Reformers  had  found  their  way  to  England, 
and  had  been  eagerly  read  ;  especially  by  the  admirers  of 
WicklifFe.  These  writings  had  enkindled  the  hopes  of  the 
persecuted  Lollards,  and  fired  anew  their  zeal ;  and  had, 
indeed,  made  many  converts  among  all  classes  of  society. 
But,  that  which  did  most,  perhaps,  to  prepare  the  minds  of 
the  people  to  acquiesce  in  the  overthrow  of  popery,  was 
the  circulation  of  Tindal's  translation  of  the  Scriptures  ; 
which  "  had  a  wonderful  spread  among  the  people."* 

This  book,  the  favorers  of  popery  endeavored  in  vain  to 
suppress.  They  bought  up  copies  and  burned  them.  But, 
this  only  furnished  poor  Tindal  with  the  means  of  publish- 
ing another  and  more  correct  edition.  So  eager  had  the 
people  become  for  the  Word  of  God,  that  the  king  thought 

*  Neal,  Vol.  J.  p.  67 ;  Hume,  Henry  VIII.  Chap.  31. 


THE  ENGLISH  REFORMATION.  191 

proper  to  have  the  Bible  translated,  set  up  in  all  the 
churches,  and  allowed  freely  to  all  the  people.  TindaPs 
Bible — though  he  himself  had  perished  as  a  heretic — was 
revised  by  Cranmer,  and  published  by  the  authority  of  the 
king  and  the  convocation  ;  "  and  eagerly  read  by  all  sorts 
of  people."* 

The  entire  reign  of  Henry  VIII,  extending  from  1509  to 
1547,  a  period  of  thirty-seven  years  and  nine  months — was 
an  exhibition  of  depotism  and  caprice  on  his  part,  and  of 
servility  and  suppleness  on  the  part  of  parliament  and  the 
mass  of  the  clergy.  The  English  parliament  was  indeed 
the  grand  instrument  of  Henry's  tyranny.  This  he  often 
convened,  and  commanded  to  do  his  pleasure  ;  and  it  sel- 
dom failed  to  obey  ;  except,  perhaps,  in  the  matter  of  pe- 
cuniary grants.  One  might  almost  believe  that  parliament 
would  have  voted,  if  the  despot  had  required  it — that  the 
souls  and  bodies  of  the  English  people  were,  and  of  right 
should  be,  the  obedient  slaves  of  his  Highness— Xhe  head 
of  church  and  slate.  Or,  that  the  people  of  England  had 
neither  souls  nor  bodies,  being  all  absorbed  and  included 
in  the  soul  and  body  of  their  sovereign  lord  the  king. 

With  such  a  master,  and  such  slaves  to  do  his  bidding, 
we  ought  not  to  expect  to  find  anything  like  a  consistent 
and  onward  progress  in  the  reformation  of  the  English 
church. 

Henry's  own  faith  was  the  only  standard  allowed  in  the 
nation  ;  and  this  he  changed  as  often  as  he  did  his  wives.t 
His  creed  was  partly  Popish,  and  partly  Protestant.  The 
Bible  which  he  set  up  in  all  the  churches,  and  commended 

*  Neal,  Vol.  I.  p.  67,  G3 ;  Hume,  Vol.  11.  Chaps.  31,  32.  pp. 
362,  375,  377,  406,   Albany  Edition. 

t  Two  of  whom  he  beheaded  ;  two  he  divorced  ;  one  died  a  nat- 
ural death,  much  to  his  sorrow  ;  and  one  outlived  him. 


192  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

to  all  the  people  at  one  time,  he  pulled  down  and  forbade 
the  people  at  another.  He  persecuted,  imprisoned,  and 
burned  to  death  both  Papists  and  Protestants  ;  sometimes 
consuming  them  in  the  same  fire.  Such  is  a  miniature 
portrait  of  Henry  VIII,  and  his  eventful  reign. 

Ecclesiastical  opinions  of  the  Reformers. 

Having  considered  briefly  and  generally  the  circumstan- 
ces and  peculiarities  of  the  Reformation,  which  commenced 
in  Henry's  reign,  we  will  now  turn  our  attention  to  the  ec- 
clesiastical opinions  of  the  Reformers,  so  far  as  these  opin- 
ions come  within  the  legitimate  range  of  our  inquiries. 
This  examination  is  the  more  important,  because  it  was 
during  this  reign  that  the  foundations  were  laid  of  the  pre- 
sent church  of  England.  It  is  under  the  "  Act  of  Supre- 
macy," that  the  successive  kings  and  queens  of  England 
have  assumed  to  be-heads  of  the  English  church;  and  it 
was  under  the  operations  of  this  supremacy,  that  our  Con- 
gregational fathers  suffered  most  severely. 

The  following  are  the  principal  doctrines  of  the  Reform- 
ers, so  far  as  I  have  discovered,  which  savor  of  Congrega- 
tionalism. 

1.  The  Scriptures  were  distinctly  recognized  as  the  rule 
of  faith  ;  and  of  church  order,  so  far  at  least,  that  nothing 
contrary  to  them  should  be  enforced. 

In  the  "  Articles  about  Religion,"  drawn  up  by  Henry, 
and  passed  in  convocation,  1536,  all  bishops  and 
preachers  are  directed  to  instruct  and  teach  the  people — 
"  that  they  ought,  and  must,  most  constantly  believe  and 
defend  all  those  things  to  be  true,  which  are  comprehended 
in  the  whole  canon  of  the  Bible,  and  also  in  the  three 
Creeds,"  viz.  The  Apostles',  the  Nicene  and  Athanasian.* 

*  Burnet,  His.  Ref.  Vol.  11.  Addenda,  No.  1 ;  Neal,  Vol.  I.  p.  69. 


ECCLESIASTICAL  OPINIONS  OF  THE  REFORMERS.        193 

Here,  to  be  sure,  there  is  no  recognition  of  the  right  of 
private  judgment  in  the  interpretation  of  the  Scriptures ; 
for  all  men  are  strictly  enjoined  to  understand  them  by  the 
light  of  these  three  earliest  and  purest  creeds  ;— still,  there 
is  a  distinct  recognition  of  the  complete  authority  of  the 
Scriptures. 

The  publication  of  the  Bible  in  the  English  tongue,  by 
royal  authority  ;  the  setting  up  of  a  large  Bible  in  every 
church  ;*  and  the  requisition  that  the  clergy  should  read 
one  or  more  chapters  in  connection  with  public  worship ; 
the  declaration  of  the  king, — "  In  God''s  name,  let  it  go 
abroad  among  my  people," — show  conclusively,  that  those 
who  had  the  direction  of  affairs,  designed  to  make  the  Bible 
the  standard  of  truth  ;  so  far  as  they  had  any  standard,  in- 
dependent of  the  king's  own  pleasure. 

This  further  appears  from  the  fact,  that  the  king  and  his 
counsellors,  in  their  inquiries  of  the  bishops  touching  their 
proposed  reformatory  measures,  constantly  appealed  to  the 
Scriptures  for  proof;  and  this,  not  alone  in  reference  to 
points  confessedly  essential  to  salvation,  but  also  upon  points 
of  order  and  ceremony  in  the  church.  This  appears  very 
clearly  in  the  questions  proposed  to  the  bishops  and  doctors 
"  concerning  the  sacraments  ;"  as, — "  What  a  sacrament 
is  hy  the  Scripture  ?"  "  How  many  there  be  hij  the  Scrip- 
tureV^  *  *  "  Whether  Confirmation,  cum  Chrismate,  [i.  e. 
accompanied    with  anointing,   *  *  ]  ^e  found  in  Scrip- 

*  A  curious  proclamation  requiring  "  the  Curates  and  Parishion 
ers  of  every  Town  and  Parish"  *  "*  "  to  buy  and  provide  Bibles 
of  tlie  largest  and  greatest  Volume,  and  cause  the  same  to  be  set 
and  fixed  in  every  of  the  said  Parish  Churches,"  and  also  regula- 
ting the  price  of  Bibles,  and  giving  directions  how  they  should  be 
used,  etc. — may  be  found  in  Burnet's  Coll.  of  Records,  Vol.  II. 
Book  III.  No.  24.  pp.  3C4— 366. 

17 


194  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ture  ?"  "  Whether  a  Bishop  hath  authority  to  make  a 
Priest  hi/  the  Scripture^  or  No  ?"  etc.* 

Fuller  and  Burnet  inform  us,  that  lord  Cromwell,  sitting 
as  vicar-general,  or  king's  representative,  in  the  convoca- 
tion of  June  9lh,  1536,  declared  that  "  it  was  the  king's 
pleasure,  that  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  church  should 
be  reformed  by  the  rules  of  Scripture,  and  that  nothing  was 
to  he  maintained  lohich  did  not  rest  upon  that  authority. ^''f 

It  may  seem  a  trifling  matter  to  dwell  upon, — that  the 
Reformers  of  Henry's  day  recognized  the  Scriptures  as  the 
end  of  controversy  ;  but,  he  who  calls  to  mind  the  fact,  that 
in  those  days  the  ecclesiastical  laws  of  Christendom  recog- 
nized "  all  ihe  decrees  of  the  bishop  of  Rome  *  *  as  God's 
Word,  spoken  by  the  mouth  of  Peter,"|: — will  perceive,  at 
once,  that  to  reject  the  pope's  authority,  and  to  appeal  to 
the  Scriptures,  upon  any  point  of  order  which  his  holiness 
had  settled,  was  the  boldest  heresy. 

The  opinions  of  the  Reformers  upon  this  subject,  appear 
yet  more  evident,  perhaps,  from  the  fact,  that  they  made  a 
distinction  between  the  religious  doctrines  of  the  Scriptures, 
"  which  be  commanded  of  God,  and  are  necessary  to  our 
salvation,"  and  the  order  and  ceremonies  of  the  church; 
which  they  termed, — "  the  honest  ceremonies,  and  good 
and  politick  order  ;"  or  "  certain  honest  and  commendable 
ceremonies,  rites,  and  usages  in  our  said  church,  for  an 
honest  policy  and  decent  order. "<5> 

These  rites  and  ceremonies,  and  this  "  good  and-  politick 

*  See  Burnet's  Coll.  Vol.  II.  Book  III.  No.  2J .  pp.  294-356. 

t  Prince's  JNew  Eng.  Chronology,  Sect.  II,  p.  2b3. 

+  "  A  Collection  of  Passages  out  of*  the  Canon  Law,  made  by 
Craniner,  to  show  the  necessity  of  reforming  it." — Burnet,  Vol,  11, 
Book  III.  No.  27,  p.  370. 

§  Burnet,  ut  sup.  Addenda,  No.  I.  pp.  440— 456. 


ECCLESIASTICAL  OPINIONS  OF  THE  REFORMERS.       195 

order,"  they  allowed  not  to  be  at  all  essential  to  salvation ; 
because  not  enjoined  in  the  Scriptures.  And  for  the  same 
reason,  they  admitted  that  the  outward  form  and  order  of 
the  church  might  be  changed  and  modified  by  the  reigning 
powers.  The  jure  divino,  or  divine  right  of  Episcopacy 
was  not  then  taught,— had  not  then  been  discovered.  The 
king  required  his  archbishops  and  bishops,  "  in  their  own 
persons,"  to  "  set  forth  to  the  people  the  Word  of  God  sin- 
cerely and  purely  ;  declaring  the  difference  between  the 
things  commanded  hy  God,  and  these  rites  and  ceremonies 
commanded  only  by  a  lower  authority."* 

Respecting  these  rites  and  ceremonies,  instituted  by  men 
either  for  the  sake  of  the  beauty,  or  the  order,  or  the  disci- 
pline of  the  church,  the  Reformers  maintained,  that  they 
were  by  no  means  necessarily  the  same  in  all  places  :  but 
subject  to  change,  and  adaptation  to  the  peculiar  manners 
and  customs  of  different  regions  ;  provided  they  were  not 
inconsistent  with  God's  Word—"  ut  sint  consentientes  Ver- 
bo  Dei."t 

2.  Two  orders  of  the  clergy  were  all  that  the  Reformers 
admitted  to  be  divine. 

In  1536  a  little  work  was  published,  called  the  "  Institu- 
tion of  a  Christian  7nan  f  or,  the  "  Bishop's  Book  ;"  "  re- 
commended, and  subscribed,  by  the  two  archbishops,  nine- 
teen bishops,  and  by  the  lower  house  of  convocation." 

In  this  book  it  is  maintained — that  there  are  "  hut  tico 
orders^ the  clergy ;  and,  that  no  07ie  Mshop  has  authority 
over  another,  according  to  the  word  of  God^ 

*  Burnet's  His.  Kei.  Vol.  V.p.  201. — 1  quote  from  the  London 
Edition  of  1820,  in  6  Vols.  8vo. 

t  See  "  A  definition  of  the  Church,  corrected  in  the  margin  by 
King  Henry's  own  hand." — Burnet,  Vol.  II.  Addenda.  No.  12. 
p.  526. 


196  HISTOKY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Near  the  close  of  Henry's  reign,  in  1543,  another 
book  was  published,  called  the  "  The  King's  Book ;"  or, 
"  A  Necessary  Erudition  for  a  Christian  man."  This  was 
drawn  up  by  a  committee  of  bishops  and  divines.  It  taught 
— that  there  is  "  no  real  distinction  between  bishops  and 
priests/'^ 

Of  deacons,  it  says  :  "  Their  office  in  the  primitive 
church,  was  partly  to  minister  meat  and  drink,  and  other 
necessaries  to  the  poor,  and  partly,  to  minister  to  the  bish- 
ops and  priests."     Then  follows  this  remarkable   passage  : 

"  OF  THESE  TWO  ORDERS  ONLY,  THAT  IS  TO  SAY,  PRIESTS 
AND    DEACONS,  SCRIPTURE    BIAKETH    EXPRESS    MENTION,  and 

how  they  were  conferred  of  the  apostles,  by  prayer  and 
imposition  of  hands  ;  but,  the  primitive  church  afterwards 
appointed  inferior  degrees,  as  sub-deacons,  acolytes,  ex- 
orcists, etc.  :  but  lest  peradventure  it  might  be  thought  by 
some,  that  such  authorities,  powers  and  jurisdictions,  as 
patriarchs,  primates,  archbishops,  and  metropolitans  now 
have,  or  heretofore  at  any  time  have  had  justly  and  law- 
fully over  other  bishops,  were  given  them  by  God  in  the 
Holy  Scriptures,  we  think  it  expedient  and  necessary,  that 
all  men  should  be  advertised  and  taught,  that  all  such  law- 
ful power  and  authority  of  any  one  bishop  over  another, 
were,  and  be  given  them  by  the  consent,  ordinances,  and 
positive  laws  of  man,  only,  and  not  by  any  ordinance  of  God 
in  Holy  Scripture ;  and  all  such  poiver,  and  authority^ 
which  any  bishop  has  had  over  another,  which  has0ot  been 
given  him  by  such  consent  and  ordinance  of  men^  is,  in 
very  deed,  no  lawful  power,  but  plain  usurpation  and 
tyrannyy^ 

This  book  contained,  as  did  its  predecessor,  the  Bishop's 

*  Neal's  His.  Puritans,  Vol.  I.  pp.  81,  82,  note. — Calamy's  De- 
fence, Vol.  I.  pp.  90,91. 


ECCLESIASTICAL  OFINIONS  OF  THE  REFORMERS.  197 

Book,  much  that  savored  of  despotism,  and  somewhat  of  re- 
ligious  error;  still,  the  reader  will  not  fail  to  notice  the  effects 
of^"  Wicleue  learning,''  as  a  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures 
was  called.  Here  are  sentiments  approaching  very  near- 
ly to  those  of  modern  Congregationalists.  But,  how  shall  we 
account  for  these  phenomena  of  that  dark  age  ?  Simply  by 
reference  to  the  facts  adduced  under  the  preceding  sec- 
tion ;— that  the  Scriptures  were  made  the  standard  of  truth. 
The  same  sentiments  are  asserted  in  several  other  docu- 
ments of  that  age  ;  as,  in  "  A  Declaration  made  of  the 
Functions  and  Divine  Institution  of  Bishops  and  [or] 
Priests ;"  where  it  is  said  :  "  the  truth  is,  that  in  the  New 
Testament  there  is  no  mention  made  of  any  degrees  or  dis- 
tinction in  orders,  but  only  of  deacons  or  ministers,  and  of 
priests  or  bishops ;  nor  is  there  any  word  spoken  of  any 
other  ceremony  used  in  the  conferring  of  this  sacrament, 
but  only  of  prayer,  and  the  imposition   of  the  bishop's 

hands." 

This  document  is  subscribed  by  more  than  thirty-seven 
dignitaries,— archbishops,  bishops,  professors  of  theology, 
and  of  civil  and  ecclesiastical  law.* 

In  another  document,  already  referred  to  (page  194), 
the  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  in  answer  to  the  question, 

*  See  Burnet,  Vol.  II.  Addenda,  No.  5.  pp.  463— 467.— The  doc- 
trine,  that  bishops  were  a  superior  order,  (jure  divino)  was  a  nov- 
elty in  the  church  of  England,  nearly  fifty  years  later  than  this. 
Dr.  John  Reynolds,  an  Episcopal  divine,  <'  who,"  Calaniy  says, 
"was  universally  reckoned  the  wonder  of  his  age,"— asserted  in 
1588,  "  that  they  who  for  these  jive  hundred  years,  have  been  in- 
dustrious in  reforming  the  church,  have  thought  that  all  pastors, 
whether  called  bishops  or  presbyters,  have,  according  to  the  word  of 
God,  like  power  and  authority.— Dei'ence  of  Non  Conformity,  Vol. 
I.  pp,  87-89.  Neal's  Pur.  Vol.  I.  pp.  480-483,  contains  a  long 
letter  from  Dr.  Reynolds  upon  this  subject. 

17* 


198  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

"  Whether  bishops  or  priests  were  first  ?"  says :  "  The 
bishops  and  priests  were  at  one  lime,  and  were  no  two 
things,  hut  loth  one  ojice  in  the  beginning  of  ChrisVs  re- 
ligion.^'*  The  same  opinion,  for  substance,  was^expressed 
by  other  bishops  and  doctors  to  whom  the  question  was 
proposed  :t  "  The  apostles  made  bothe  Bishops  and  Prestes  : 
The  Names  whereof  in  the  Scripture  be  confounded. ''''\ 

3.  Respecting  the  rights  of  the  people  to  choose  their 
own  pastors,  and  to  exercise  discipline,  the  Reformers  held 
the  following  language  :  "  In  the  apostle's  time,  when  there 
was  no  Christian  princes,  by  whose  authority  ministers  of 
God's  Word  might  be  appointed,  nor  sins  by  the  sword  cor- 
rected, there  was  no  remedy  then  for  the  correction  of  vice, 
or  appointing  of  ministers,  but  only  the  consent  of  Christian 
multitudes  among  themselves,  by  an  uniform  consent,  to 
follow  the  advice  and  persuasion  of  such  persons  whom 
God  had  most  endowed  with  the  spirit  of  counsel  and  wis- 
dom. *  *  Sometimes  the  apostles  and  others,  unto  whom 
God  had  given  abundantly  his  Spirit,  sent  or  appointed 
ministers  of  God's  word  ;  sometimes  the  people  did  choose 

*  See  Burnet,  Vol.  11.  pp.  320—329. 

f  See  the  answer  of  the  bishop  of  London,  and  of  Dr.  Cox,  and 
of  Dr.  Day;  the  last  of  whom  says  :  "  In  the  beginning  of  the 
church,  as  well  that  word  "  Episcopus  as  Presbyter,  was  common 
and  attributed  both  to  bishops  and  priests." 

;  See  Burnet,Vol.VI.  Coll.Rec.JNo.70.QueslO.  In  the  69th  No. 
the  reader  may  find  the  same  answers,  in  substance,  with  Henry's 
remarks  in  the  margin  ;  from  which  it  is  evident,  that  he  doubted 
the  scriptural  authority  for  Episcopal  confirmation.  And  upon  the 
question,  "  whether  any  other  but  only  a  bishop  may  make  a  priest .'' 
Henry  proposes  a  query,  which  must  have  been  rather  embarrass- 
ing to  their  reverences, — to  wit :  Since  you  confess  that  the  prince 
has  authority  to  appoint  bishops,  'Miow  can  you  prove  that  order- 
ing [or  ordaining]  is  only  committed  to  you  bishops.'*" 


ECCLESIASTICAL  OPINIONS  OF  THE  REFORMERS.        199 

such,  as  they  thought  meet  thereunto  ;  and  when  any  were 
appohited  or  sent  by  the  apostles  or  others,  the  people  of 
their  own  voluntary  will  wiih  thanks  did  accept  them  ;  not 
for  the  supremity,  empire,  or  dominion,  that  the  apostles 
had  over  them  to  command,  as  their  princes,  and  masters, 
but  as  good  people  ready  to  obey  the  advice  of  good  coun- 
sellors, and  to  accept  anything  that  was  necessary  for  their 
edification  and  benefit." 

Thus  spake  his  grace  of  Canterbury.  Verily  one  might 
almost  suspect  his  lordship  of  being  one  of  those  gainsay- 
ers  of  a  later  period,  to  whom  Wickliffe  has  been  com- 
pared. But,  we  have  not  yet  seen  the  end  of  my  lord 
primate's  "  crude  asHmptions.''''* 

In  his  answer  to  the  question,  "  Whether  any  other  but 
only  a  bishop  may  make  a  priest  .^"  he  is  so  bold  as  to  assert, 
that  even  a  Christian  people  may  make  their  own  bishops 
or  priests  by  election  ;  but  the  reader  shall  see  Cranmer's 
own  words  :  "  A  bishop  may  make  a  priest  by  the  Scrip- 
ture, and  so  may  princes  and  governors  also,  and  that  by 
the  authority  of  God  committed  to  ihem,  and  the  people  also 
hy  their  election  ;  for  as  we  read  that  bishops  have  done  it, 
so  Christian  emperors  and  princes  usually  have  done  it,  and 
the  people  hejore  Christian  princes  were,  commonly  did 
elect  their  bishops  and  priests ^f 

And,  in  answer  to  another  question,  the  archbishop  goes 
yet  further  ;  and  declares,  that  even  any  consecration,  fur- 
ther than  an  "  election  or  appointing"  to  the  office  is  un- 
necessary.    His  words  are  :  "  In  the  New  Testament,  he 

*  See  Mr.  Taylor's  learned,  and  not  very  un-preiending  work — 
^'■Ancient  Christianity,''  p.  33.  Ain.  Ed. — wliere  he  speaks  of  the 
"  crude  assumptions  on  which  ihe  modern  Congregational  system 
rests." 

t  Burnet,  Vol.  II.  Book  ill.  p.  330. 


200  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

that  is  appointed  to  be  a  bishop,  or  priest,  needeth  no  con- 
secration by  tlie  Scripture, ybr  election^  or  aj)poinLing  there- 
to, is  sufficient.''''* 

Such  appear  to  have  been  the  opinions  of  the  celebrated 
Cranmer,  archbishop'of  Canterbury  during  the  whole  period 
of  the  Keformation,  and  the  very  spring  and  life  of  the 
whole  movement,  so  far  as  it  was  a  religious  reformation. 
It  is  true,  that  Cranmer  was  ahead  of  most  of  the  divines  of 
his  day  in  the  boldness  and  scriptural  character  of  many  of 
his  opinions  ;  yet,  it  is  evident  from  an  examination  of  this 
list  of  questions  and  answers,  occupying  over  sixty  octavo 
pages,  that  there  were  others  among  the  bishops  and  doc- 
tors who  were  not  far  behind  the  archbishop ;  and  indeed, 
upon  some  points,  even  out-ran  him. 

Dr.  Leyghton  asserts,  that  the  power  of  the  keys  resides 
chifjly  in  the  Church— '"''  potestas  clavium  residet  praecipue 
in  Ecclesia."t  And,  in  another  place  he  says  :  "  That  not 
only  bishops  and  priests  may  excommunicate,  but  any  other 
man  appointed  by  the  church,  or  such  as  have  authority  to 
appoint  men  to  that  office  may  excommunicate. | 

Dr.  Coren  asserted,  that  "  forasmuch  as  the  keys  be 
given  to  the  whole  church,  the  ivhole  congregation  may  ex- 
communicate,  which  excommunication  may  be  pronounced 
by  such  an  one  as  the  congregation  does  appoint,  although 
he  be  neither  Bishop  or  Priest."§ 

Dr.  Oglethorp  agreed  with  Dr.  Coren.  He  says  :  "  Non 
solem  Episcopus  Excommunicare  potest,  sed  etiam  tola 
Congregatio," — not  only  may  a  bishop  excommunicate,  but 
also  the  whole  congregation  ;  that  is,  for  deadly  and  public 
crimes,  by  which  scandal  is  brought  upon  the  church.  Not 

*  Burnet,  Vol.  II.  Book  111.  p.  333. 

t  Ut  sup.  p.  440.  X  Ibid,  p.  351 .  §  Ibid.  pp.  351 ,  532, 


ECCLESIASTICAL  OPINIONS  OF  THE  REFORMERS.        201 

however,  on  account  of  pecuniary  matters  (re  pecuniaria) 
as  was  formerly  customary.* 

I  have  now  mentioned  what  seems  to  be  most  worthy  of 
notice  in  the  ecclesiastical  opinions  of  those  who  commen- 
ced what  is  called  "  The  English  Reformation,"  so  far  as 
these  opinions  fall  in  with  the  design  of  this  history. 

No  one,  I  presume,  will  suppose  the  writer  simple  enough 
to  believe  that  Henry  VIII,  or  Thomas  Cranmer,  or  vice- 
gerent Cromwell,  had  any  intention  of  reducing  the  Eng- 
lish hierarchy  to  the  shnplicily  of  Congregational  churches. 
Far  from  this.  These  men  were  Erastians  ;  they  believed, 
that  the  outward  order  of  the  church  might,  and  ought  to 
be  regulated  by  the  prince  or  the  magistrates  of  every 
Christian  country,  as  seemed  best  suited  to  the  circumstan- 
ces and  peculiarities  of  that  country.  This  certainly  was 
Cranmer's  belief;  and  so  fully  did  he  act  up  to  it,  that  he 
took  his  archiepiscopal  office,  subject  to  the  king's  pleasure  ; 
and  at  the  decease  of  Henry,  he  resigned  his  office,  and  de- 
clined acting  any  longer  as  archbishop  of  Canterbury  until 
re-appointed  by  the  new  government. 

Cranmer,  and  those  who  acted  with  him  in  this,  and  the 
succeeding  reign,  were  emphatically  the  fathers  of  the 
English  church.  Their  ecclesiastical  opinions  are,  there- 
fore, worthy  of  very  special  regard,  as  presenting  a  striking 
contrast  with  the  opinions  afterwards  broached,  and  still  in- 
sisted upon  by  those  occupying  the  seats  of  the  Reformers. 
One  can  hardly  avoid  feeling,  that  those"  wise  men  of  Go- 
tham"— wise  above  what  is  written — who  praise  so  highly 
the  Reformers  of  their  church,  and  condemn  so  roundly  the 
crudities  of  Congregationalism — would  do  well  to  remem- 
ber, that  the  first  archbishop  of  Canterbury  in  the  Reformed 
Church  of  England,  and  some  of  the  most  learned  doctors 

^  '^  Ut  sup.  p.  350. 


202  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

of  his  day,  believed  in  several  of  the  very  "  crude  assump- 
tions" of  modern  Consregationalists.* 


CHAPTER  XI. 

BEIGN  OF  EDWARD  VI,  1546. — THE  REFORMATION  ENDED, 
1553. POPERY   RESTORED. 

The  reign  of  Edward  VI.  was  an  interesting  and  mem- 
orable period  of  English  history.  He  was  the  only  son  of 
Henry  VIII.  by  his  favorite  queen,  Jane  Seymour.     At  the 

*  I  am  tempted  to  introduce  here — a  short  extract  from  the  Uto- 
pia of  Sir  Thomas  Moore,  vice-chancellor  of  England,  and  one  of 
the  most  learned  and  remarkable  men  of  Henry's  reign.  Sir 
Thomas  was  a  good  Catholic; — some  have  called  him  a  bigoted 
one, — Be  this  as  it  may,  he  died  in  defence  of  the  pope's  supre- 
macy. 

His  Utopia  is  a  vision  of  his  imagination,  in  which  he  probably 
embodied  his  fullest  conceptions  of  a  perfect  government  in  church 
and  state.  In  this  work  he  represents  the  Utopians  on  receiving 
Christianity,  as  inclined,  and  resolved  to  choose  priests  that  should 
officiate  among  them,  since  they  would  not  have  any  that  were 
regularly  ordained." — "  He  proposes  no  subjection  of  their  priests 
to  any  head."  Here  we  have  the  equality  of  all  preachers. —  "He 
makes  them  to  be  chosen  by  the  people  and  consecrated  by  the  col- 
lege of  priests;  and  he  gives  them  no  other  authority  but  that  of 
excluding  men  that  were  desperately  wicked  from  joininir  in  their 
worship,  which  .was  short  and  simple."  *  *  Now  these  expres- 
sions, though  found  in  a  work  purely  imaginative,  are  well  worthy 
the  notice  of  the  reader,  as  shadowing  forth  the  conceptions  of 
one  of  the  wisest  and  most  moderate  men  among  the  papists  of  the 
fifteenth  century,  upon  the  subject  of  church  order,  etc. —  1  quote 
from  bisb.op  Burnet's  His.  Ref  Vol.  V.  pp.  44,  45, 


THE  ENGLISH  REFORMATION.  203 

death  of  his  father,  Edward  was  only  nine  years  and  four 
months  old  ;  but  was  a  youth  of  much  loveliness,  great 
promise,  and  uncommon  intelligence.  Henry  had  carefully 
arranged  a  plan  of  government  to  continue  during  his  son's 
minority  ;  vainly  hoping  to  reign  by  his  Will  when  he  him- 
self was  no  more.  For  this  purpose  he  appointed  sixteen 
executors,  to  be  regents  of  the  kingdom  until  Edward  was 
eighteen  years  old :  these  were  to  be  assisted  by  twelve 
counsellors,  whom  he  also  named. 

If  Henry  forgot,  that  he  should  cease  to  be  king  when  he 
ceased  to  live ;  and  that  when  he  ceased  to  be  king  he 
would  neither  be  feared  nor  obeyed,  his  subjects  did  not. 
One  of  the  first  acts  of  these  executors  and  counsellors,  on 
assuming  the  government  of  the  kingdom,  was  to  depart 
from  the  late  king's  will,  by  appointing  one  of  their  num- 
ber to  be  Protector,  who  should  represent  the  king,  be 
encircled  with  the  "  exterior  symbols  of  royal  dignity,*  and 
be  at  the  head  of  the  government,  though  without  authority 
to  act  independently  of  his  coadjutors,  the  executors  and 
counsellors.  Their  choice  fell  on  the  earl  of  Hertford,  af- 
terwards created  Duke  of  Somerset,  Edward's  maternal 
uncle. 

Henry,  it  would  seem,  sought  to  give  to  the  new 
government  the  prominent  characteristics  of  his  own.  Ac- 
cordingly, the  administrators  of  it  were  in  part  Reformers 
and  in  part  Papists  :  the  former,  however,  had  the  ascen- 
dancy. At  their  head  was  the  young  king ;  who  was  care- 
fully instructed  in  the  principles  of  the  Reformation,  by  his 
tutor.  Dr.  Cox.  The  Protector  was  also  a  patron  of  the 
Reformation.  Next  to  him  stood  Cranmer,  the  moving 
spirit  of  reform  under  the  late  king  ;  the  archbishop  of  York 
was  on  the  same  side  ;  so  were  the  secretary  of  slate,  and 

*   Hume. 


204  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

the  lord  admiral ;  and  the  bishops  of  Lincoln,  and  Ely,  and 
Worcester,  and  Rochester  ;  the  last  two  being  Latimer  and 
Ridley,  so  famous  in  after  history. 

On  the  side  of  Popery  were  the  princess  lady  Mary,  the 
next  heir  to  the  crown  ;  the  lord  chancellor ;  Tonstal, 
bishop  of  Durham  ;  Gardiner,  bishop  of  Winchester ;  and 
Bonner,  bishop  of  London. 

The  Reformers  having  the  power  in  their  hands,  began 
immediately  to  relax  the  oppressive  laws  of  the  late  reign. 
Persecution  was  stopped,  and  the  prisoners  for  conscience 
sake,  set  free  :  several  exiles,  as  Coverdale,  Hooper,  and 
Rogers,  with  others,  returned  from  Germany.     These  men 
had  imbibed  much  more  of  the  spirit  of  reform,  by  their  fa- 
miliarity with  the  continental  Reformers,  than   Henry  had 
allowed  in  his  prelates  ;  and   began   immediately  on  their 
return  to  give  utterance  to  their  deep  abhorrence  of  the  re 
maining  abominations  of  Popery  in  the  English  church 
They  preached  boldly  against   images  in  the  churches 
against  masses  for  the  dead  ;  and  other  superstitious  fune 
ral  services.     Their  labors  awoke  the  nation  to  the  neces 
sity  of  further  reformation.     The  government  proceeded 
gradually  to  correct  various  abuses.     They  first  removed 
from  the  churches  such  images  as  had  been  the  objects  of 
idolatrous  veneration  ;  and  finally,  all  images  and  pictures. 
The  clergy  were  instructed  to  preach  against  pilgrimages, 
and  praying  to  images ;  and  were  directed  to  correct  vari- 
ous other  superstitions  among  the  people.     The  new  ad- 
ministration next  obtained  from  the  parliament,  the  repeal 
of  the  persecuting  laws  which  had  been  in  force  during  the 
late  reign  ;  particularly  "  two  of  the  statutes  against  LoZ- 
Zarrfies.* 

*  Neal.  —  Hume  says  :  "  all  the  former  laws  against  LoUardy 
or  heresy."— Ed.  VI.  Chap.  34. 


THE  ENGLISH  REFORMATION.  205 

Several  learned  foreign  reformers  were  invited  over  to 
England,  and  settled  in  the  universities  and  elsewhere  ;  as 
the  celebrated  Peter  Martyr,  who  was  appointed  to  the  di- 
vinity chair  at  Oxford  ;  and  Bucer,  who  was  made  profes- 
sor of  divinity  in  Cambridge. 

The  Reformers  next  set  themselves  to  correct  the  forms 
of  public  worship,  and  to  draw  up  a  Liturgy,  or  formulary 
of  public  devotions,  embracing  the  principles  to  which  they 
had  then  arrived,  or,  which  they  thought  fit  to  publish  ;  and 
finally  to  set  forth  articles  of  faith.  The  Common  Prayer 
Book  sent  forth  by  them  was  a  piece  of  Mosaic-work, 
formed.chiefly,  out  of  several  Popish  books  of  devotion,  etc. ; 
translated  into  English,  and  published  in  the  king's  name.* 
This  was  confirmed  by  an  act  of  parliament ;  and  severe 
penalties  were  connected  with  any  deviation  from  this  order 
of  public  worship  ;  it  was  even  made  penal  to  write  or  print 
against  this  book.  In  all  these  measures  of  reformation, 
neither  the  people  nor  ihe  clergy  were  consulted.  The 
council  seem  to  have  caught  the  mantle  of  the  late  king, 
and  to  have  followed  up  the  plan  which  he  so  long  had 
pursued.  They  acted  as  the  supreme  authority  ;  and  in- 
deed, as  the  only  authority  in  the  kingdom.     And,  by  so 

*  Neal,  Vol.  I.  p.  95,  96.  —  Caldervvood,  in  his  Church  History 
says:  "The  Common  Prayer  is  little  less  than  a  translation  of 
several  parcels  put  together,  of  the  Roman  Breviary,  Missal,  and 
Ritual."  He  mentions  six  canticles  in  the  C.  F.  which  are  word 
for  word  from  the  Mass  Book. 

"  When  the  Devonshire  men  were  stirred  up  to  rebellion  on  ac- 
count of  the  alteration  of  their  Mass  Book,  king  Edward  VI.  tells 
them,  in  a  letter,  to  quiet  them :  'As  for  the  service  in  the  English 
tongue,  it  perchance  seems  to  you  a  new  service,  but  yet  indeed  it 
is  no  other  but  the  old — the  selfsame  words  in  English.'  "  —  De- 
laune's  Plea,  pp.  47,  52. 

18 


206  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

doing,  they  had  the  misfortune  to  satisfy  fully  neither  the 
Proteslants  nor  the  Papists.  For  the  most  devoted  of  the 
former,  the  Reformers  were  too  timid  and  temporizing ; 
while  the  latter,  were  indignant  at  the  audacity  of  men  who, 
in  the  minority  of  their  present  king,  presumed  to  disregard 
the  model  set  up  by  their  late  wise  and  learned  monarch. 
Men  of  very  opposite  opinions  have  praised  the  English 
Reformation,  for  the  moderation  and  prudence  with  which 
it  was  conducted.  That  it  was  an  improvement  on  the 
Popery  of  preceding  ages,  no  one  can  doubt ;  but,  that 
it  was  anything  belter  than  a  reformed  Popery,  after  all,  it 
will  be  difficult  to  prove.  The  grand  principle  on  which 
the  work  was  carried  forward,  was  the  very  principle  of 
Popery — the  right  of  a  few  to  command  the  multitude. 
Henry  VIU.  was  as  much  pope  of  England,  as  his  holiness 
was  of  Rome  :  and  the  government  of  Edward  VI.  assumed 
the  same  infallible  authority,  to  make  a  faith  and  ecclesias- 
tical polity  for  the  people,  without  consulting  the  people 
through  their  representatives  in  parliament ;  or  the  clergy 
in  convocation.  These  bodies — particularly  the  former — 
were  called  upon  to  sanction  the  doings  of  the  council :  and 
so  were  they  to  sanction  the  tyranny  of  Henry  YIII.  ;  but 
they  acted  not  as  free  agents  in  either  case. 

The  rights  of  private  judgment  were  not  regarded  by  the 
Reformers.  Uniformity  in  faith,  and  in  worship,  and  in 
non-essential  rites  and  observances,  was  enforced.  It  is 
true,  most  of  the  persecuting  statutes  of  preceding  reigns 
were  repealed  ;  but,  a  heretic  was  still  liable  to  death  by  the 
common  law ;  and  if  so,  what  material  point  was  gained  } 
Would  the  fire  kindled  by  statute  law,  burn  more  fiercely 
than  that  which  was  lighted  up  by  the  common  law  }  The 
cap  and  surplice  were  as  much  insisted  on,  as  any  article  of 
faith.     The  godly  Hooper  was  compelled  to  be  a  bishop, 


THE  ENGLISH  EEFORMATION.  207 

notwithstanding  his  remonstrances ;  and  was  sent  a  prisoner 
to  the  Fleet  for  refusing  to  be  consecrated  in  the  popish 
habits  of  the  priesthood.  Hooper,  with  others  of  the  most 
devoted  reformers,  was  for  shaking  off  entirely  the  shreds 
of  Popery  ;  he  was  willing  to  be  a  bishop,  if  ihat  was  his 
sovereign's  pleasure,  and  to  be  clothed  in  a  suitable  garment, 
to  designate  him  from  the  laity;  he,  however,  strenuously 
objecied  to  the  old  Popish  dresses,  which  had  been  vene- 
rated by  the  people  as  essential  to  the  right  and  effectual 
performance  of  clerical  duties.  But  the  Reformers — tech- 
nically so  called— insisted  that  every  jot  and  tittle  of  their 
ecclesiastical  laws,  relating  to  rites  and  ceremonies,  as  well 
as  to  religious  faith,  should  be  strictly  observed  :  affirming, 
that,  "  in  matters  of  rites  and  ceremonies,  custom  was  a  good 
argument  for  the  continuance  of  those  that  had  been  long 
used."  *  This  has  ever  been  a  favorite  argument  with  the 
friends  of  the  English  hierarchy  :  but,  if  it  proves  anything 
it  proves  too  much.  If  antiquity  sanctions  the  cap  and  sur- 
plice, why  does  it  not  also  the  gloves,  the  sandals,  the  mi- 
tre, the  ring  and  crosier,  which  the  Reformers  laid  aside.? 
And  not  these  things  merely,  but  much  more  important 
matters  besides.  The  recent  movements  among  the  an- 
tiquity-party in  the  English  church  clearly  demonstrate  the 
danger  of  this  rule  insisted  on  by  the  Reformers.  For 
surely,  if  this  argument  is  good  for  a  part  of  the  rites  and 
ceremonies  of  the  ancient  church,  it  is  equally  good  for  all. 
If  some  of  the  relics  of  Popery  may  be  venerated  for  their 
antiquity,  all  may,  which  have  the  same  recommendation  ; 
and  if  so,  the  Reformation,  so  far  as  the  order  and  cere- 
monies of  the  church  were  concerned,  was  an  unwarranta- 
ble revolution  ;  and  the  bitter  Churchman,  Heylin,  was  not 
so  far  astray,  when  he  declared  the  reign  of  Edward  "  un- 

*  Neal,  I.  p.  111. 


208  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

fortunate  ;  and  that  his  death  was  not  an  infelicity  to  the 
church."  *  The  Reformers  were  doubtless  prudent  and 
cautious  in  their  movements ;  but,  it  is  painfully  evident 
that — good  men  as  they  were — much  of  their  prudence 
and  caution  was  icorldly  and  political^  rather  than  such  as 
Cometh  down  from  above.  Instead  of  cutting  loose  at  once 
from  the  rotten  carcase  of  Popery,  and  taking  the  apostolic 
churches  as  their  model,  and  throwing  before  the  nation  the 
New  Testament  as  the  statute  book  of  the  Church, — they 
adopted  as  much  of  Popery  as  their  consciences  would  al- 
low, and  mixed  as  much  of  truth  with  it  as  they  thought 
the  nation  would  bear,  and  the  interests  of  the  crown  would 
admit.  They  pulled  down  Roman  Papacy,  and  employed 
the  massive  and  venerable  ruins  in  erecting  English  Epis- 
copacy. They  cut  off  the  Pope's  head  from  the  English 
Church,  and  put  on  the  king's,  instead  of  it;  and  if  the  legs 
of  their  image  were  iron,  its  feet  were,  at  best,  but  "  part 
of  iron  and  part  of  clay  ;"  the  very  foundation  on  which  it 
was  made  to  stand,  was  then,  and  is  now,  liable  to  be  smit- 
ten by  the  stone  "  cut  out  without  hands,"  and  to  be  broken 
in  pieces. 

It  is  not  my  intention  to  go  into  further  details  respecting 
the  English  Reformation.  What  has  been  said,  seemed 
necessary  to  assist  the  reader  to  understand  the  history  of 
after  ages.  The  Reformers  were  wise  and  good  men,  and 
deserve  to  be  had  in  lasting  remembrance  for  what  they 
did  to  emancipate  the  kingdom  from  the  slavery  of  Roman- 
ism. Still,  few  Protestants  will  maintain,  that  it  was  not  a 
material  error  in  these  fathers  of  the  Church  of  England, 
to  insist  upon  entire  uniformity  ;  and  to  persecute  even  their 
reforming  brethren  for  refusing  to  conform  to  non-essential 
rites  and  ceremonies.     It  is  to  this  reign — about  the  year 

*  Neal,  1.  p.  123. 


THE  ENGLISH  REFORMATION.  209 

1550— that  the  origin  of  Nonconformists  is  traced  ;  and 
bishop  Hooper  may  be  regarded  as  the  father  of  this  new 
sect — if  such  we  may  call  them — who  afterwards  made  so 
considerable  a  figure  in  English  history.* 

After  what  has  been  said  of  the  errors  of  the  Reformers, 
it  is  but  an  act  of  justice  to  their  memory  to  add — that  they 
would  have  gone  further  in  iheir  reformatory  labors  had 
they  deemed  it  safe  so  to  do.  The  insurrections  which  oc- 
curred in  connection  with  their  movements,  made  them  fear 
to  carry  out  their  full  convictions.  Some  things  were  re- 
tained at  the  Reformation,  as  bishop  Burnet  tells  us — "  to 
draw  the  people  more  entirely  into  it."  Other  things  were 
received,  or  rather  tolerated^  as  bishop  Grindall  and  Horn 
tell  us,  "  till  the  Lord  shall  grant  better  times."  And 
bishop  Jewell  said :  "  I  wish  that  all,  even  the  minutest 
relics  of  Popery,  could  be  removed,  both  out  of  the  churches, 
and  much  more  out  of  the  minds  of  men."  t  These  senti- 
ments were  uttered  in  1566 — 67,  a  period  somewhat  later 
than  that  now  under  consideration,  but  by  men  who  breathed 
much  of  the  spirit  of  the  Reformers  of  Edward's  reign. 

That  king  Edward  was  of  the  same  mind  appears  from 
the  writings  of  John  a  Lasco,  a  noble  Polander — the  learned 
and  pious  superintendent  of  all  the  foreign  churches  in  Lon- 
don during  Edward's  time.  In  a  work  published  in  1555, 
he  says :  "  King  Edward  desired  that  the  rites  and  cere- 
monies used  under  Popery,  should  be  purged  out  by  de- 

*  I  say  Nonconformists,  rather  than  Puritans,  because  Furitan- 
ism  was  a  higher  degree  of  nonconformity  ;  and  it.  is  desirable  to 
marli  the  progress  of  reformation — P'irst,  Nonconformity  ;  next, 
Puritanism;  and  finally,  Separation.  The  first,  to  be  sure,  had 
the  germ  of  both  the  others.  Cranmer,  Ridley,  Latimer,  and  oth» 
ers  then  in  power,  finally  came  fully  into  Hooper's  sentiments  re^ 
specting  the  Popish  habits. 

t  See  Burnet,  Vol.  111.  Coll.  Rec.  Book  G, 

18* 


210  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

grees ;  that  it  was  his  pleasure  that  strangers  should  have 
churches  to  perform  all  things  according  to  apostolical  ob- 
servation only,  that  by  this  means  the  English  churches 
might  be  excited  to  embrace  apostolical  purity  with  the 
unanimous  consent  of  the  states  of  the  kingdom."* 

Mr.  Neal  says  of  the  Reformers  of  this  reign, — "  that  they 
were  not  satisfied  with  the  present  discipline  of  the  church. "t 
Edward  himself  is  said  to  have  lamented  that  the  times  did 
not  allow  him  to  restore  the  primitive  discipline  of  the 
church,  according  to  his  heart's  desire. 

Dr.  Cox,  the  king's  tutor,  wrote  to  the  learned  Bullinger, 
of  Zurich,  Switzerland,  in  1550  :  "I  think  all  things  in  the 
church  ought  to  be  pure  and  simple,  removed  at  the  great- 
est distance  from  the  pomps  and  elements  of  this  world. 
But,  in  this  our  church,  what  can  I  do  in  so  low  a  station  .? 
I  can  only  endeavor  to  persuade  our  bishops  to  be  of  the 
same  mind  with  myself  This,  I  wish  truly,  and  I  commit 
to  God  the  care  and  conduct  of  his  own  work."  J 

A  further  evidence  of  the  intentions  of  the  Reformers,  ap- 
pears from  what  is  said  in  the  preface  of  one  of  their  ser- 
vice books,  to  this  purpose  :  "  that  they  had  gone  as  far  as 
they  could  in  reforming  the  church,  considering  the  times 
they  lived  in,  and  hoped  they  that  came  after  them  would, 
as  they  might,  do  more."§ 

Mr.  Neal  tells  us,  on  the  authority  of  Bullinger,  that  arch- 
bishop Cranmer  was  not  satisfied  with  the  liturgy  "  though 
it  had  been  twice  reformed."  || 

From  the  above  extracts  it  appears,  that  the  Reformers 
— at  least  the  more  zealous  among  them — had  no  thought 
that  they  had  completed  their  work.  Acting  upon  the  princi- 

*  Neal,  Vol.  1.  p.  121.  t  lb.  pp.  121—124. 

t  Burnet,  Vol.  V.  p.  296.  §   Neal,  Vol.  1.  p.  121. 

II  Vol.  I.  p.  122,  123. 


THE  ENGLISH  REFORMATION.  211 

pies  which  they  had  embraced,  and  surrounded  with  the 
difficulties  of  those  days,  they  did  what  they  thought  they 
could ;  leaving  it  in  trust  to  those  who  should  come  after 
them,  to  finish,  as  they  might,  had  they  been  disposed,  the 
work  so  well  begun.  How  fully  this  trust  was  fulfilled, 
has  already  been  intimated,  and  will  appear  yet  more  fully 
in  the  sequel. 

Mr.  Neal  gives  the  following  summary  of  the  principles 
and  doctrines  of  the  Reformers  of  Edward's  reign. 

"  1.  That  in  matters  of  failh  the  first  Reformers  followed 
the  doctrine  of  St.  Austin,  [Augustine,]  in  the  controverted 
points  of  original  sin,  predestination,  justification  by  faith 
alone,  effectual  grace,  and  good  works. 

2.  That  they  were  not  satisfied  with  the  present  disci- 
pline of  the  church,  though  they  thought  they  might  submit 
to  it,  till  it  should  be  amended  by  the  authority  of  the  legis- 
lature. 

3.  That  they  believed  but  two  orders  of  churchmen  in 
Holy  Scripture,  namely,  bishops  and  deacons  ;  and  conse- 
quently, that  bishops  and  priests  were  but  different  ranks 
or  degrees  of  the  same  order. 

4.  That  they  gave  the  right  hand  of  fellowship  to  foreign 
churches,  and  ministers  that  had  not  been  ordained  by 
bishops;  there  being  no  dispute  about  re-ordination  in  or- 
der to  any  church  preferment,  till  the  latter  end  of  queen 
Elizabeth's  reign. 

In  all  which  points  most  of  our  modern  churchmen  have 
departed  from  them^* 

But,  the  Reformation  was  soon  terminated,  by  the  un- 
timely and  poss\h\y ^violent  death  t  of  the  amiable,  learned, 

*  Vol.  1.  Cliap.  2.  pp.  123,  124.     See  also,  pp.  106  and  120. 
t  Neal  says :  "  It  was  more  than  whispered  that  he  was  poison- 
ed."—Vol.  I.  p.  123. 


212  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

and  devout  young  prince,  Edward  VI.  He  died,  apparent- 
ly of  consumption,  on  the  6lh  of  July,  1553  ;  in  the  six- 
teenth year  of  his  age,  and  the  seventh  of  his  reign. 

Before  the  decease  of  the  young  monarch,  an  attempt 
was  made  to  fix  the  succession  upon  the  amiable  and  ac- 
complished lady  Jane  Grey.  An  attempt  which  proved  as 
unfortunate  to  thai  beautiful  lady,  as  it  was  unauthorized 
and  illegal.  It  brought  her  fair  head  to  the  block.  The 
inscrutable  providence  of  God  had  decreed  that  England 
should  be  ruled  for  a  season,  by  the  counsellors  of  that  in- 
carnation of  all  that  was  odious — Mary.  Afier  a  brief  re- 
view of  her  reign,  we  shall  be  prepared  to  enter  upon  the 
more  important  and  interesting  periods  of  English  history, 
when  the  scattered  elements  of  Congregational  belief  were 
gathered  together,  embodied  and  professed  by  distinct 
churches,  which  maintained  their  scriptural  rights  at  the 
sacrifice  of  every  earthly  comfort — yea,  of  life  itself. 

Accession  of  Mary ^  1553. 

Mary  was  the  eldest  daughter  of  Henry  VIII.  and  his 
first  queen,  Catharine  of  Arragon.  Mary  and  her  sister 
Elizabeth  had  both,  in  turn,  been  declared  illegitimate,  and 
their  title  to  the  throne  set  aside  by  their  capricious  father ; 
and  these  acts  had  been  confirmed  by  his  obedient  parlia- 
ments. 

Henry,  nevertheless,  in  perfect  consistency  with  his  un- 
parallelled  inconsistency,  finally  settled  the  succession  upon 
them  in  case  of  Edward's  decease,  and  failure  of  issue. 

It  was  the  apprehended  consequences  of  Mary's  reign, 
who  had  shown  herself  a  determined  papist,  which  induced 
the  young  king  to  set  her  aside,  and  fix  upon  the  lady  Jane, 
who  stood  next  to  Henry's  own  daughters  in  the  line  of 
succession.     This  act  was,  however,  so  manifestly  illegal, 


POPERY  RESTORED.  213 

that  some  of  the  most  zealous  of  the  Reformers  refused  to 
countenance  it,  though  they  foresaw  the  disastrous  conse- 
quences of  Mary's  accession.  Under  these  circumstances, 
we  need  not  wonder  that  she  found  little  difficulty  in  vindi- 
cating her  claim,  and  making  her  way  to  the  English  throne. 

But  this  siie  did  not  accomplish  before  she  had  solemnly 
promised — "  that  no  innovation  should  be  made  of  reli- 
gion."* On  these  conditions,  "  The  Suffolk  men,"  who, 
as  Fox  tells  us,  "  being  always  foward  in  promoting  the 
proceedings  of  the  Gospel,  promised  her  their  aid  and 
help." 

One  of  her  first  acts  on  getting  possession  of  the  Tower 
was  to  modify  this  promise  to  "  the  Suffolk  men,"  by  say- 
ing, she  meant  not  "  to  compel  or  strain  other  people's  con- 
sciences." A  few  days  afterwards,  feeling  herself  more 
secure  on  the  throne,  she  still  further  explained  herself  by 
saying — "  the  subjects  were  not  to  be  compelled  until  pub- 
lic order  should  he  taken  for  z7."t 

The  Reformers  soon  began  to  experience  the  workings  of 
their  own  principles  of  action,  wielded  by  a  Popish  govern- 
ment. The  right  of  the  prince  to  make  and  establish  a  re- 
ligion for  the  nation,  though  in  words  denied  by  Mary,  be- 
gan immediately  to  be  exercised.  Before  any  of  the  laws, 
of  the  late  reign  establishing  the  order  of  faith  and  worship 
in  the  nation  had  been  repealed,  the  queen  issued  her  pro- 
clamations forbidding  all  preaching  without  her  special  li- 
cense ;  or,  in  plain  terms— silencing  all  the  Protestants  of 
the  kingdom. 

*  Fox's  Acts  and  Monuments,  Vol.  IJI.  p.  12,  Fol.  Ed.  1684. 

t  Burnet,  Vol.  V.  Book  V.  p.  3*22;  Neal,  Vol.  I.  p.  127.  To 
avoid  the  inconvenience  of  particular  references,  1  may  here  say 
that  the  account  of  Mary's  reign  is  drawn  up  by  a  comparison  of 
the  authors  al)ove  quoted,  and  Clarke's  Martyrology,  Chaps.  50— 
C4,  and  Hume's  Mary. 


214  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

The  Suffolk  men  presuming  lo  remonstrate  with  the 
queen,  were  sharply  rebuked  for  their  insolence;  and  one 
of  their  leaders  was  put  in  the  pillory  for  three  days,  and 
lost  his  ears,  for  alluding  to  the  queen's  promise,  not  to  al- 
ter religion. 

The  reforming  bishops  were  speedily  removed,  and  most 
of  them  imprisoned  ;  and  violent  papists  were  put  into 
their  places.  Between  the  5lh  and  31st  of  August, — the 
first  month  of  Mary's  reign,* — Fox  records  eleven  arrests  ; 
among  which,  were  the  proto-martyr  Rogers,  and  bisiiops 
Hooper  and  Coverdale  ;  old  bishoj)  Latimer,  and  archbishop 
Cranmer  were  arrested  by  the  middle  of  the  next  month, 
together  with  others  of  less  note.  About  the  same  date 
(Sept.  16th),  the  French  Protestants  were  ordered  to  leave 
the  kingdom.  The  learned  and  godly  John  a  Lasco,  super- 
intendent of  the  foreign  churches,  was  first  silenced,  and 
then  compelled  to  depart  for  his  native  land,  as  was  Peter 
Martyr,  professor  of  divinity  at  Oxford.  In  a  few  months, 
about  800  persons,  foreseeing  the  rising  storm,  fled  their 
country  ;  among  whom  were  five  bishops,  five  deans,  and 
above  fifty  doctors  of  divinity,  and  other  distinguished  di- 
vines and  preachers,  "  besides  noblemen,  merchants,  trades- 
men, artificers  and  plebians."  The  queen,  however,  had 
no  intention  of  suffering  her  prey  thus  easily  to  escape  ; 
and  soon  forbade  her  subjects  to  leave  the  kingdom  without 
passports. 

On  the  1st  of  October,  1553,  Mary  was  crowned,  with 
all  the  pomp  and  ceremony  which  Gardiner  and  half  a 
score  of  popish  bishops,  with  their  mitres,  copes,  and  cro- 
siers could  display. 

*  She  was  proclaimed  on  the  li>th  of  July, but  can  hardly  be  said 
to  have  commenced  her  reign  until  August  3d,  when  she  entered 
London. 


POPERY  RESTORED.  215 

The  parliament,  which  met  on  the  10th  of  the  same 
month,  were  directed  to  repeal  the  laws  of  Edward  VI.  re- 
specting religion.  This  they  did,  after  a  debate  of  six  days ; 
and  enacted,  under  suitable  pains  and  penalties — "  That 
after  the  20th  of  December  next,  there  should  be  no 
other  form  of  divine  service  but  what  had  been  used  in  the 
last  year  of  Henry  VIII." 

Here  was  a  further  modification  of  the  queen's  promise 
not  to  alter  religion. 

In  April  of  the  same  year,  parliament  was  again  assem- 
bled. The  chief  business  of  this  session  appears  to  have 
been,  to  authorize  the  marriage  of  Mary  with  Philip,  son  of 
the  emperor  Charles  V.  of  Spain.  It  seems  that  Mary,  im- 
mediately after  her  accession  to  the  throne  had  set  her  heart 
on  being  married.  Her  kind  disposition  towards  Courtney, 
the  accomplished  earl  of  Devonshire,  had  been  hinled  to 
that  nobleman,  but  even  gratitude  to  the  queen  for  his  re- 
lease from  the  Tower,  where  he  had  been  long  confined, 
could  not  induce  him  to  marry  so  odious  a  woman  as  Mary, 
even  though  she  had  a  crown  upon  her  head.  She  next 
proposed  the  cardinal  Pole ;  but  was  dissuaded  from  this, 
on  the  ground  of  his  advanced  age,  and  growing  infirmities. 
She  then  turned  her  heart  upon  Philip  of  Spain ;  with 
whom  she  became  so  enamoured,  without  having  so  much 
as  seen  him,  as  to  write  the  first  love  letter  which  passed 
between  them.  Philip,  though  about  eleven  years  younger 
than  Mary, — he  being  in  his  twenty-seventh  year  and  she 
in  her  thirty-eighth, — and  knowing  the  queen  to  be  desti- 
tute of  all  personal  attractions,  weak  in  intellect,  and  odious 
in  heart,* — yet   consented  to  the  marriage,  and  distributed 

*  Hume,  in  summing  up  the  characteristics  of  Mary,  says  : 
<'  She  possessed  few  qualities,  either  estimable  or  amiable  ;  and 
her  person  was  as  little   engaging  as   her  behavior  and  address. 


216  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Spanish  gold  abundantly  to  bring  the  parliament  into  the  ar- 

Obstinacy,  bigotry,  violence,  cruelty,  malignity,  revenge,  tyranny  ; 
every  circumstance  of  her  character  took  a  tincture  from  her  bad 
temper,  and  narrow  understanding.  And  amidst  that  complica- 
tion of  vices,  which  entered  into  her  composition,  we  shall  scarcely 
find  any  virtue  but  sincerity,  a  quality  which  she  seems  to  have 
maintained  through  her  whole  life  ;  except  in  the  beginning  of  her 
reign,"  etc.  *  * 

Not  to  insist  on  the  exception  to  Mary's  sincerity,  which  Hume 
admits — though  this  exception  is  sufficiently  broad  ;  there  is 
another  on  record,  which  the  historian  must  have  overlooked  ;  I 
refer  to  her  submission,  from  "  the  bottom  of  her  heart  and  stom- 
ach," to  her  father,  made  in  1536.  In  this  document  she  puts  soul 
and  body,  for  time  and  eternity,  into  the  hands  of  her  most  princely 
father.  She  says,  among  other  things  of  the  same  import  :  "  As  1 
have,  and  shall,  knowing  your  excellent  learning,  virtue,  wisdom, 
and  knowledge,  put  my  soul  into  your  direction  ;  and  by  the  same 
have,  and  will  in  all  things  from  henceforth  direct  my  conscience, 
so  my  body  1  do  wholly  commit  to  your  mercy,  and  fatherly  piety, 
desiring  no  state,  no  condition,  nor  no  meaner  degree  of  living,  but 
such  as  3'our  grace  shall  appoint  me  ;  acknowledging  and  confess- 
ing, that  my  state  cannot  be  so  vile,  as  either  the  extremity  of  jus- 
tice would  appoint  unto  me,  or  as  mine  offences  have  required  or 
deServed."  And  in  a  letter  to  Cl-omwell,  the  kings  vicegerent, 
upon  the  same  topic,  Mary  says  :  '^  For  mine  opinion  touching  pil- 
gritnages,  purgatory,  reliques,  and  such  like,  1  assure  ynu  I  have 
none  at  all,  but  such  as  1  shall  receive  from  him  who  hath  mine 
whole  heart  in  keeping,  that  is,  the  king's  most  gracious  highness, 
my  most  benign  father,  who  shall  imprint  in  the  same  touching 
these  matters  and  all  other,  what  his  inestimable  virtue,  high  wis- 
dom, and  excellent  learning,  shall  think  convenient,  and  limit  un- 
to me."  *  *— See  Burnet,  Vol.  IV.  B.  II.  Coll.  Nos.  3,  4,5  and  6. 
pp.  334-339. 

How  much  of  sincerity  or  truth  there  was  in  all  this  turning  up 
of  her  heart,  etc.,  I  leave  others  to  decide.  Mary,  it  is  true,  was 
sufficiently  resolute  in  the  maintenance  of  her  popish  principles 
during  Edward's  reign  ;  but  there  were  personal  and  selfish  rea- 
sons enough  for  this  ;  and  she  well  knew  that  she  had  little  to  fear 


POPERY    RESTORED.  217 

rangement*  (the  match  being  very  unpopular  annong  the 
people, — with  the  ambitious  hope  of  thus  possessing  himself 
of  the  crown  of  England,  as  well  as  of  his  hereditary  do- 
minions. 

The  match  was  made,  and  the  marriage  consummated  ; 
but  not  with  the  approbation  of  the  nation  ;  neither  did  it 
prove  a  fortunate  one  to  the  parties.  It  was,  in  one  sense, 
indeed  a  merciful  event  to  the  nation  ;  because  it  probably 
shortened  the  days  of  this  bloody  queen.  She  sighed 
away  her  unhappy  life  under  the  neglect  of  her  haughty 
consort. 

A  third  session  of  parliament  was  called  in  November 
of  the  same  year  (1554) ;  whose  first  business  was,  to  pre- 
pare the  way  for  the  pope's  legate,  cardinal  Pole,  to  enter  the 
kingdom.  This  was  done,  by  repealing  the  act  of  attainder 
under  which  Henry  had  laid  the  cardinal.  One  of  the  next 
steps  of  this  parliament  was  to  present,  on  their  knees,  a 
supplication  to  the  king  and  queen,  to  intercede  with  the 
legale  for  the  pardon  of  the  two  houses  and  the  nation,  for 
their  late  presumptuous  rejection  of  the  pope's  supremacy. 
The  representative  of  his  holiness,  was  graciously  pleased  to 
grant  the  prayer  of  the  lords  and  commons,  on  condition 
that  all  the  obnoxious  laws  against  the  pope's  power  were 
immediately  repealed.  With  these  conditions  the  parlia- 
ment complied,  and  received  absolution  wpon  Ihnr  hiees, 
from  the  representative  of  "  Christ's  vicar."  This  parlia- 
ment was  ready  to  submit  their  souls  and  bodies  to  their 
sovereign  lord,  the  pope  ;  but  their   hands  were  upon  iheir 


from  Edward.     Under   her  father   it  was  otherwise,  and  she  was 
then  sufHciently  hypocritical  and  craven  spirited. 

*  This  is  said  to  have  been  the  first  instance  in  which  bribery 
was  practised  upon  an  English  parliament. 

19 


218 


HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 


swords,  when  called  to  give  up  the  spoils  of  the  monasteries, 
etc.,  which  Henry  had  distributed  amonsr  his  favorites. 

*•  The  next  act  brought  into  the  house,"  says  Neal,  "  was 
for  reviving  the  statutes  of  Richard  II,  and  Henry  IV.  and 
V,  for  burning  heretics  ;  which  passed  both  houses,  in  six 
days,  to  the  unspeakable  joy  of  the  popish  clergy." 

Popery  being  now  fully  re-established  in  the  kingdom, 
and  all  things  being  made  ready  for  the  tragedy, ''  The 
Mother  of  Harlots"  stalked  forth  upon  the  stage,  and  began 
to  play  her  appropriate  and  characteristic  part :  just  the 
part  she  has  ever  played  when  the  stage  was  clear  for  her; 
just  the  part  she  would  now  play,  even  in  these  United 
States,  had  she  opporlunity. 

There  had  been  erected,  in  different  parts  of  London, 
twenty  galloics.  These,  however,  were  chiefly  designed 
to  strike  terror  into  the  common  people;  and  for  the  use 
of  lesser  ofTenders,  such  as  traitors  and  rebels.  But  more 
cosily  sacrifices  were  thought  needful  to  secure  the  safe 
delivery  of  the  queen  of  a  male  child,  "  in  body  beautiful 
and  comely,  in  mind  noble  and  valiant."* 

*  See  Dr.  Weston's  prayer  for  the  safe  delivery  oi"  the  Queen. — 
Fox,   Vol.  III.  pp.  1)4,  95.      The   martyrologist  tells   us  that  the 
queen  thought  she  could  not  be  safely  delivered  until  all  the  here- 
tics in  the  tower  were  burned.     Nothing  exhibits   Mary  in  a  more 
ridiculous  light  than  the  preparations  which  she  allowed — required, 
1  should   say — to  be   made  for  her  accouchement.     Messengers 
were  designated,  to  be  ready  at  a  moment's  warning,  to  carry  the 
news  to  the  various  courts  of  Europe  ;  their  salaries   were  fixed, 
ships  kept  in  readiness  to  transport  them,  etc.     Prayers   were  or- 
dered to  be  offered  up  in  the  churches,  such  as  the  extract  in  the 
text  indicates  ;  rockers  and  nurses,  etc.   were   engaged,  and   the 
cradle  itself  was  prepared;  the  whole  nation  kept  on   tiptoe  of  ex- 
pectation for  months  ;  and  finally,  the  birth  of  a  prince  announced, 
and  his  comely  person  described,  even   from  the  pulpit;  the  bells 
rung,  cannon  fired,  bonfires  kindled  : — and  <'  in   the  end  appeared 


POPERY    RESTORED.  219 

These  were  to  be  holocausts — whole  burnt  ofTerings. 
The  burning  commenced  with  John  Rogers,  February  ^ih^ 
1555.  Laurence  Saunders,  followed,  on  the  8lh  of  Feb- 
ruary, and  the  next  day,  Bishop  Hooper,  after  roasting  for 
"  three  quarters  of  an  hour  or  more,  even  as  a  lamb,  pa- 
tiently he  abode  the  extremity  thereof,  neither  moving  for- 
wards, backward,  nor  to  either  side."  Dr.  Taylor  per- 
ished the  same  day,  after  suffering  the  most  unmerciful 
treatment. 

It  is  not,  however,  my  intention  to  write  a  martyrology  : 
let  him  who  would  understand  the  true  genius  of  Popery — 
unalterable  Popery — read  Fox's  third  volume,  or  Clarke's 
Martyrology,  59 — 64  chapters  inclusive.  Suffice  it  to  say, 
that  the  fires  of  persecution  continued  to  rage  until  Novem- 
ber 1 0th  1558,  when  five  godly  martyrs  perished  in  the 
same  fire  at  Canterbury — six  days  before  the  wretched 
queen  herself  was  called,  as  we  have  reason  to  fear,  to  en- 
ter that  fire  which  shall  never  be  quenched;  November 
17th  1558,  in  the  43d  year  of  her  age,  and  the  sixth  of  her 
reign. 

The  whole  number  of  persons  who  perished  during  this 
reign — "  all  over  mean  and  black,"  as  Burnet  calls  it — 
was  not  far  from  300  ;  including  1  archbishop,  4  bishops, 
21  clergymen  ;  and  gentlemen,  laborers,  mechanics,  ser- 
vants, women  and  children,  sufficient  to  make  up  the  sum 
total ;  together  with  16  who  perished  in  prison.*     The  un- 

neither  young  master  nor  young  mistress,  that  any  man  yet  to  this 
day  can  hear  of,"  as  old  Fox  says  ;  and  what  is  still  more,  there 
is  loo  much  reason  to  suspect  that,  in  part,  if  not  in  the  whole,  it 
was  a  popish  trick  to  delude  the  miserable  people. 

*  Neal  and  Hume  estimate  the  number  "  brought  to  the  stake  " 
at  277  — Hume,  Vol.  II.  Chap.  37.  p.  544.  Strype  estimates  them 
at  2^$S.  It  is  asserted  on  the  authority  of  lord  Burleigh,  of  the 
succeeding  reign,  that  400  perished  publicly  during  this  reign,  be- 


220  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

told  and  unutterable  miseries  of  this  reign  of  darkness  and 
terror,  the  judgment  day  alone  can  fully  reveal.  God 
seems  to  have  suffered  this  infatuated,  superstitious,  and 
odious  woman  to  rule  for  a  season,  that  the  world  might 
have  an  imperishable  picture  of  Popery,  drawn  to  the  life, 
by  its  own  hand,  in  colors  of  blood.  It  will  be  well  for  the 
world,  if  one  picture  suffice. 

Congregationalism  in  Mary''s  Reign. 

It  may  seem  almost  incredible,  that  any  Protestant  Con- 
gregations could  live  amidst  the  fires  of  Mary's  reign  : 
Nevertheless,  there  is  reason  to  believe,  that  there  were 
churches,  maintaining  some  of  the  distinguishing  peculiari- 
ties of  Congregationalism  even,  which  lived  through  this 
storm  of  fire  ;  and  actually  maintained  their  secret  worship 
in  different  places,  within  the  city  of  London  itself. 

Fox  mentions  the  arrest  of  "  masiei'  Rose  and  certain 
honest  men  and  women  of  the  city,  to  the  number  of  thirty, 
in  a  house  in  Bow-Church-Yard,  at  the  communion;"  Jan- 
uary 1st  1555.*  In  another  place  we  are  told  of  the  sei- 
zure of  one  John  Roughs  who  had  been  "  elected  "  the  min- 
ister of"  the  secret  society  and  holy  congregation  of  God's 
people"  which  assembled  in  London  ;  and  of  Cuthbert 
Sympson,  a  tailor  by  trade,  "  the  deacon  of  that  said  godly 
company  and  congregation."  This  deacon,  it  seems,  kept 
a  book,  containing  "  the  names  and  accounts  of  the  con- 
gregation," who  are  called  '"''Gospellers ;'''  a  name  given 
by  the  Papists  to  the  followers  of  Wickliffe.  Sympson 
was  cruelly  racked  three  times  in  one  day,  and  again  the 
next  day,  to  induce  him  to  reveal  the  names  and  places  of 


sides  those  who  were  secretly  murdered  in  prison. — Burnet,  VoI.V. 
B.  5.  p.  387  ;  Neal,  Vol.  J.  pp.  144,  145. 
*  Acts  and  Monuments,  Vol.  III.  p.  93. 


DURING  Mary's  reign.  221 

abode  of  the  members  of  this  church  :  which,  however,  no 
torments  could  extort  from  him.  He  finally  perished  at 
the  stake.*  Cuthbert  Sympson  seems  to  have  been  a 
church  officer  very  much  like  the  deacon  of  a  Congrega- 
tional church  ; — one  who  kept  the  accounts  of  the  church, 
and  who  had  the  general  supervision  of  their  temporal  af- 
fairs. This  is  a  slight  incident  to  hang  a  conclusion  upon, 
yet  it  clearly  points  to  another  order  of  things  from  what 
had  heretofore  existed  in  the  kingdom.  Such  an  officer  as 
a  non-preaching  deacon  was  an  anomaly  in  English  history  ; 
and  could  have  been  the  result  of  nothing  else  but  "  VVick- 
leue  learning ;"  and  could  have  been  found  among  none 
others  than  "  Gospellers."  I  mark  the  incident,  as  fur- 
nishing the  first  intimation,  noticed  in  English  history,  of 
the  existence  of  a  primitive,  scriptural  deacon  ;  and  conse- 
quently, of  a  church,  embracing  scriptural  principles  of 
church  polity,  so  far  at  least. 

.  These  "secret  congregations,  which  met  in  private 
houses,  in  the  fields,  in  taverns,  on  board  of  ships,"  any 
where,  to  enjoy  the  privilege  of  worshipping  God  agreeably 
to  the  dictates  of  their  own  consciences — were,  of  necessity 
if  not  of  choice,  led  to  adopt  the  principles  of  Congrega- 
tionalism. They  were  only  so  numerous  as  could  conve- 
niently assemble  together.  It  was  unnecessary  to  restrict 
their  members  to  such  as  loved  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  for 
no  others  would  adventure  their  lives  in  such  a  cause  ;  they 
elected  their  own  minister ;  and  they  worshipped  with  few 
and  simple  ceremonies.  It  is  said,  indeed,  that  Rough's 
church  used  king  Edward's  Service  Book ;  but  the  good 
man  declared,  at  his  examination,  that  they  were  not  con- 

*  Fox,  ut  sup.  pp.  722—720;  Clarke,  Chap. 61  ;  Neal,  1.  p.  148. 

19* 


222  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

fined  to  it ;  and  in  the  celebration  of  the  communion,  did 
not  use  it  at  all.* 

Whether  these  churches  were  made  what  they  were  by 
the  pecuharities  of  their  situation,  or  had  existed  previously 
to  the  accession  of  the  Persecutor,  I  have  no  means  of  de- 
ciding.t  One  thing  is  certain,  that  no  church  but  such  as 
was  substantially  Congregational  could  have  existed,  in  an 
organized  form,  during  the  terrible  persecutions  of  Mary's 
reign.  And  it  certainly  deserves  remark,  that  this  organi- 
zation may  be  as  perfectly  observed  under  persecution,  as 
in  the  highest  prosperity  ;  no  insignificant  argument  in  fa- 
vor of  its  being  that  form  of  church  government  which 
Christ  designed  for  universal  adoption.  We  have,  how- 
ever, fuller  evidence  than  the  hints  just  alluded  to,  that 
there  were  churches  of  the  Congregational  description  as 
early  as  the  time  of  Mary. 

Orme,  in  his  life  of  John  Owen,  (page  48),  in  speaking 
of  Browne,  the  reputed  author  or  discoverer  of  Congrega- 
tionalism, in  1582,  says:  ''Long  before  he  was  heard  of, 
perhaps  before  he  was  born,  there  were  persons  in  England 
who  held  and  acted  on  these  sentiments,  as  far  as  was  prac- 
ticable in  their  circumstances.  Bolton^  though  not  the  first 
in  this  way,  was  an  elder  of  a  separate  church  in  the  begin- 
ning of  queen  Elizabeth's  days."|  [1558]. 

GifFord,  writing  against  the  Brownists  at  a  period  some- 
what  later,  (1590),   says:    "Many   men  think   they   be 

*  See  Fox,  ut  sup. 

t  Clarke  (Chaps.  56,  57)  mentions  the  existence  of  secret  con- 
gregations of  Christians  in  different  parts  of  the  kingdom  during 
the  reigns  of  Henry  VII.  and  VIII.  These  appear  to  have  been 
Wickliffites  ;  and  to  have  been  quite  numerous.  I  see  notl)ing  un- 
reasonable in  the  supposition  that  they  may  have  survived  unto 
Mary's  day. 

1  See  Robinson's  Justification,  p.  50. 


DURING  Mary's  reign.  223 

sprung  up  but  of  late  ;  but  whereas,  in  very  deed,  it  is  well 
known,  that  there  was  a  church  of  them  in  London  twenty- 
years  past." 

"  Penry,  in  his  address  to  queen  Elizabeth,  says  :  '  If  we 
had  queen  Mary's  days,  I  think  we  should  have  been  as 
flourishing  a  church  at  this  day,  as  ever  any  ;  for  ii  is  well 
known  that  there  were  then  in  London,  and  elsewhere  in 
exile,  more  flourishing  churches  than  any  tolerated  by  your 
authority.'  " 

The  same  author  (Orme)  says  :  "  In  the  year  1567  a 
number  of  persons  were  imprisoned  who  belonged  to  a  so- 
ciety of  about  a  hundred,  who  appear  to  have  been  of  this 
persuasion."* 

I  introduce  the  above  extracts  out  of  their  chronological 
order,  that  1  may  present,  in  one  view,  what  little  I  have 
been  able  to  collect  illustrative  of  the  progress  of  scriptural 
principles  of  church  polity,  up  to  the  close  of  Mary's  reign. 
Penry  was  a  devoted  follower  of  these  principles,  and  un- 
doubtedly knew  the  history  of  his  own  brethren  :  he  as- 
serts, without  qualification,  that  there  were  flourishing  In- 
dependent churches  in  Mary's  day.  And,  the  fad,  that 
a  few  years  after  this  date— in  the  early  part  of  Elizabeth's 
reign— there  was  a  single  church,  containing  a  hundred 
souls,  is  very  strong  presumptive  evidence  that  these  prin- 
ciples were  not  then  of  very  recent  discovery. 

The  reason  that  we  have  not  more  full  historical  details 
of  these  dissenters  from  all  hierarchies,  is  very  plain  :  these 
men  were  compelled  to  hide  themselves  from  all  the  pow- 
ers in  authority,  whether  Protestant  or  Popish  ;  and  conse- 
quently, little  would  be  known  of  them  until  the  watchful- 

*  See  Orme,  ut  sup. ;  also  Hanbury's  "Historical  Memorials 
Relating  to  Independents,"  Vol.  I.  pp.  15 — 17.  London,  1839  * 
Prince's  New  England  Chro.  Sec.  11.  p.  302. 


224  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ness  of  their  enemies,  or  the  unfaithfulness  of  some  of  their 
own  number,  discovered  them  to  the  government. 

That  the  leaven  of  Congregationalism  was  extensively 
diffused  through  the  English  nation  previous  to  the  time 
of  which  I  am  now  speaking,  is  very  evident  from  the  course 
adopted  by  many  of  the  exiles  who  fled  to  the  Continent  on 
the  accession  of  Mary.  As  early  as  June  27th  1554,  a 
company  of  English  exiles  entered  Frankfort,  Germany — 
"  the  first  *  *  that  there  arrived  to  remain."  At  their  head 
was  the  famous  William  Whiltingham,  a  clergyman  of  large 
fortune,  which  he  had  forsaken  for  the  comfort  of  a  good 
conscience  in  a  foreign  land.  Immediately  after  their  ar- 
rival, (July  8),  they  applied  to  the  magistrates  for  the  use 
of  a  church  "  wherein  they  might  have  God's  word  truly 
preached,  and  the  sacraments  sincerely,  (that  is,  purely) 
ministered  in  their  natural  tongue.  July  14th  they  obtained 
their  request,  and  then  (forming  themselves  into  an  Inde- 
pendent, church)  consult  what  order  of  service  to  use,  and 
the  English  order  [established  in  the  latter  part  of  Edward's 
reign]  being  perused,  they  by  general  consent  conclude, 
that  the  answering  aloud  after  the  minister  should  not  be 
used  ;  that  the  litany,  surplice,  and  many  other  things,  be 
omitted  ;  that  in  the  sacraments  also,  sundry  things  be 
omitted  as  superstitious  and  superfluous.  And  having 
chosen  their  ministers  and  deacons^  they  enter  their  church 
on  (Lord's  Day)  July  29."*  From  Neal  we  learn,  that 
this  church  were  of  opinion  "  that  in  all  controversies 
among  themselves,  and  especially  in  cases  of  appeal,  the 
dernier  resort  should  be  in  the  church."  t  One  of  their  ar- 
ticles of  agreement  was,  "  that  the  ministers  and  seniors 
[elders],  and  every  of  them,  be  subject  to  ecclesiastical  dis- 

*  *<  Treatise  of  the  Troubles  in  Frankfort,"   in  Prince's   N.  E. 
Chron.  Sec.  11.  p.  286. 

t  His.  Puritans,  Vol.  I.  pp.  150—157. 


DURING  Mary's  reign.  225 

cipline  and  correction,  as  others, — private  nnennbers  of  the 
church  be."* 

I  have  been  particular  in  nnarking  the  dates,  as  above,  to 
show,  that  the  peculiar  notions  of  this  church  were  not  de- 
rived from  any  intercourse  with  those  among  whom  they  had 
gone  to  reside.  Whatever  they  were,  they  were  brought 
with  the  exiles  from  England,  And  that  they  were  essen- 
tially Congregational,  or  Independent,  is  very  obvious  from 
their  proceedings  ;  from  the  character  of  their  church  offi- 
cers— simple  elders  and  deacons  ;  and  above  all,  from  the 
grand  principle  of  Congregationalism  which  they  recognized 
in  asserting  the  church  to  be  the  ultimate  source  of  all 
power  and  authority  under  Christ. 

Dr.  Cox  and  his  friends  joined  these  exiles  about  eight 
months  after  their  organization  ;  and  by  their  attempts  to 
introduce  the  entire  English  service,  finally  broke  up  this 
church.  After  various  manoeuvres  the  Congregationalists 
being  out-voled,  retired  to  Geneva  rather  than  live  in  a  quar- 
rel at  Frankfort.  In  Geneva,  Mr.  Whittingham  and  his 
friends  established  another  church,  which,"  in  its  discipline, 
government,  and  form  of  worship,  is  said  to  have  varied  but 
little  from  that  of  the  Congregational  churches  of  the  pres- 
ent day."f 

"  Other  exiles  out  of  England  set  up  another  (Independ- 
ent) church  at  Embden,  in  East  Friesland,  whereof  bishop 
Scory  was  the  superintendent.  Others  formed  another  (In- 
dependent) church  at  Wesel,  in  West  Phalia,  to  which 
bishop  Coverdale  preaches.  But  he  being  called  away ,  they 
removed  to  Arrow  in  Switzerland,  under  the  conduct  of  Mr. 
Thomas  Seaver." 

I  extract  the  above  from  the  accurate  Prince,  who  in  a 
note  says :    "  I  call  them  all   Independent  churches ;   for 

*  Troubles  in  Frankfort,  quoted  by  Hanbury,  p.  248,  Note  rf. 
t  Baylies'  Historical  Memoir  of  Plymouth  Colony,  Vol.  1,  p.  3. 


226  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

though  their  historians  give  them  not  this  title,  yet  they 
were  plainly  such  in  reality."  *  And  even  the  church  or- 
ganized by  Dr.  Cox  and  his  coadjutors,  seems  finally  to 
have  embraced  principles  and  practices  more  nearly  in  ac- 
cordance with  our  denominational  peculiarities  than  those 
on  which  they  set  out ;  and  to  have  become  entirely  recon- 
ciled to  their  injured  brethren  at  Geneva,* 

From  all  which  it  appears,  That  Congregationalism  had 
an  embodied  existence  in  its  principles — though  not  in  name 
— at  home  and  abroad,  during  even  the  reign  of  the 
"  bloody  Mary." 

We  are  now  about  to  emerge  from  the  dark  ages  of  our 
history.  We  are  approaching  a  period  when  the  principles 
of  Congregationalism  were  fully  discovered,  and  developed, 
and  maintained  ;  a  period  memorable  for  mighty  men  and 
wonderful  events — men  and  events  which  are  likely  to  be 
remembered,  and  whose  influence  will  be  felt,  while  the 
world  shall  stand. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


ACCESSION  OF  ELIZABETH,  1558.     THE  NON-CONFORMISTS. 

THE  PURITANS. 

Elizabeth,  the  daughter  of  Henry  VIII.  and  Anne 
Boleyn,  succeeded  her  sister  Mary.  During  her  sister's 
tyrannical  reign,  this  princess  was  in  constant  jeopardy  ; 
she  suffered  imprisonment,  and  narrowly  escaped  with  her 
life.  A  woman  of  less  prudence  would  have  fallen  a  vic- 
tim to  the  jealous  bigotry  of  Mary. 

*  N.  E.  Chro.  Sec.  11.  p.  267,  and  note. 


REIGN  OF  ELIZABETH.  227 

Elizabeth,  from  motives  of  interest,  if  not  from  principle, 
was  a  friend  of  the  Reformation  ;  and  as  such,  her  acces- 
sion to  the  throne  was  joyfully  hailed  by  all  the  Protestants 
of  the  kingdom. 

She  found  the  nation  in  a  most  wretched  condition  ;  bur- 
dened with  a  foreign  war,  and  distracted  and  disgusted  by  a 
home  administration  of  unparallelled  meanness  and  cruelty. 
And  though  she  ascended  the  throne  amidst  the  joyful 
acclamations  of  the  parliament  and  the  people,  she  was  en- 
vironed with  difficulties  and  dangers.  She  had  been  pro- 
nounced illegitimate  by  the  pope,  and  her  title  to  the  crown 
was  openly  questioned  ;  a  large  portion  of  her  people  were 
zealous  papists  ;  while  a  yet  larger  part  were  inflamed 
with  the  deepest  hatred  against  the  authors  and  abettors 
of  the  late  persecutions. 

Watchfulness,  firmness,  and  prudence,  were  indispensa- 
ble requisites  in  the  new  administration.  And  these  it  cer- 
tainly displayed.  It  may  indeed  be  reasonably  questioned, 
whether,  in  the  management  of  the  religious  interests  of 
the  nation,  the  government  did  not  descend  from  prudence 
to  time-serving. 

Reign  of  Elizabeth. 

The  queen,  on  assuming  the  reins  of  government,  care- 
fully avoided  giving  any  unnecessary  offence  or  alarm  to  the 
advocates  of  Popery  ;  but,  at  the  same  time,  she  encourag- 
ed the  Reformers  to  hope  for  important  advantages  from 
her  reign.  She  retained  quite  a  number  of  her  sister's 
popish  counsellors ;  but  balanced  their  influence  by  intro- 
ducing nearly  an  equal  number  of  new  members,  devoted 
to  the  interests  of  the  Reformation.  She  recalled  the  exiles 
for  religion  ;  though  she  inhibited  preaching  without  a  spe- 
cial licence.     She  forbade  the  host  lo  be  elevated  any  more 


228  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

in  her  presence  ;  but  retained  many  of  the  apendages  of 
Popery  in  her  private  chapel. 

She  prudently  declined  allowing  any  very  extensive 
changes  in  the  national  religion  until  she  had  consulted  her 
parliament,  which  was  summoned  at  an  early  day — Jan. 
25th,  1559. 

The  court  had  taken  pains— according  to  the  fashion  of 
the  day — to  secure  a  majority  in  the  parliament  favorable 
to  the  designs  of  the  new  government.  One  of  the  first 
acts  of  this  body  relating  to  ecclesiastical  affairs,  was,  tore- 
store  to  the  crown,  "  the  first-fruits  and  tenths,"  which 
Mary  had  given  up  to  the  church.  Another  act  repealed 
some  of  the  laws  against  heretics;  and  made  it  no  longer 
penal  to  use  the  religious  rites  of  Edward's  day.  The  par- 
liament also  authorized  the  use  of  the  vulgar  tongue  in  the 
public  services  of  the  church.  They  gave  the  queen  power 
to  nominate  bishops  to  vacant  sees  by  conge  cfelire — or 
leave  to  elect.  They  suppressed  the  monasteries  estab- 
lished by  Mary,  and  gave  their  revenues  to  the  crown. 
But  the  most  important  acts  of  this  parliament  were  those 
establishing  the  queen's  Supremacy^  and  the  Uniformily  of 
Common  Prayer.  These  two  acts  were  the  fountain-head 
of  all  the  ecclesiastical  impositions,  and  the  exertions  of  ar- 
bitrary power  and  cruelty  for  which  the  reign  of  this  Eliza- 
beth is  memorable.  The  former  of  these  acts  obliges  ''  all 
persons  in  any  public  employs,  whether  civil  or  ecclesiasti- 
cal, to  take  an  oath  in  recognition  of  the  queen's  right  to 
the  crown,  and  of  her  Supremacy  in  all  cases.,  ecclesiastical 
and  civil.,  on  penalty  of  forfeiting  all  their  promotions  in  the 
church,  and  of  being  declared  incapable  of  holding  any 
public  office.* 

*  Neal,  Vol.  1.  pp.  1C6,1G7. ;  Hume,  Vol.  II.  Ch.38.  pp.  5G7-569. 


REIGN  OF  ELIZABETH.  229 

This  act  also  authorized  the  queen  and  her  successors  to 
appoint  commissioners  "  to  use,  occupy,  and  exercise  un- 
der her  and  them,  all  manner  of  jurisdiction  *  *  touching 
any  spiritual  or  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction  within  the  realms 
of  England  and  Ireland,  *  *  lo  visit,  reform,  redress,  or- 
der, correct,  and  amend  all  errors,  heresies,  schisms,  abuses, 
contempts,  offences,  and  enormities  whatsoever,"  etc.* 
This  clause  was  the  foundation  of  that  iniquitous,  inquisi- 
torial, tyrannical  court  of  High  Commissloiis,  to  which  we 
shall  have  frequent  occasion  to  refer  in  the  course  of  this, 
and  the  succeeding  reigns. 

These  two  acts  of  parliament  made  the  queen  sovereign 
over  the  actions  and  consciences  of  all  her  subjects.  They 
made  her  the  author  and  finisher  of  their  faith  ;  they  hung 
on  her  girdle  the  keys  of  church  discipline ;  they  empow- 
ered her  to  impose  rites  and  ceremonies  at  her  pleasure  ; 
they  gave  her  power  to  appoint  all  bishops ;  and  by  her 
permission  alone,  could  the  the  clergy  assemble  in  convo- 
cation, to  consult  and  deliberate  for  the  good  of  the  church<, 

The  act  establishing  "  Uniformity  of  Common  Prayer, 
and  Service  in  the  Church,"  etc.,  placed  the  church  about 
mid-way  between  where  Henry  VIII.  and  Edward  VI.  left 
it ;  a  little  in  advance  of  Henry's  establishment,  yet,  con- 
siderably behind  Edward's.  The  Mass  was  abolished  ; 
the  services  of  the  church  were  performed  in  English  ;  and 
the  Liturgy  of  Edward  was  adopted  in  substance.  The  of- 
fensive passages  against  the  pope,  in  the  English  service, 
were,  however,  stricken  out ;  and  the  doctrine  of  the  corpo- 
real presence  in  the  eucharist,  was  left  doubtful ;  "  some  of 
the  collects  were  a  little  altered."  The  old  popish  festivals 
and  habits  were  retained  ;  and  images,  and  crucifixes  in  the 

*  Neal,  Vol.  I.  pp.  166,167;  Hume,  Vol.  11.  Ch.  38.  pp.  567—569. 
20 


230  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

churches  reluctantly  abandoned.  The  sacrament  was  to  be 
received  only  in  the  posture  of  kneeling  ;  and  unleavened 
wafer-bread  alone  was  allowed.  Entire  uniformity  in  all 
things  was  demanded.  Such  was  the  act  of  Uniformity  ; 
which,  with  the  act  of  Supremacy,  proved  a  two-edged 
sword,  cutting  down  indiscriminately  Papists  and  Protes- 
tants. The  latter,  however,  were  much  the  severer  suffer- 
ers ;  the  queen  always  appearing  more  tender  of  the  Papists, 
than  of  the  non-conforming  Protestants.  Indeed,  she  was 
more  than  half  Papist  herself.  It  is  difficult  to  believe,  that 
anything  but  state  policy,  made  her  at  all  friendly  to  the  Pro- 
testant religion. 

The  reader  must  not  suppose,  that  these  acts  were  pas- 
sed, much  less  enforced^  without  great  opposhion.  The 
Popish  bishops,  of  course,  voted  against  the  act  of  Supre- 
macy ;  for  they  could  not,  with  any  color  of  consistency, 
change  again  ;  having  acknowledged  the  supremacy  of  the 
crown  under  Henry  and  Edward,  and  then  of  the  pope, 
under  Mary.  They  accordingly  refused  the  oath,  and  were 
removed  from  their  bishoprics,  with  a  single  exception. 
Three  of  the  chief  instruments  of  cruelty  under  the  late 
reign  were  imprisoned  ;  Bonner,*  of  London,  White  of 
Winchester,  and  Watson  of  Lincoln  ; — but  were  not  kept  in 
rigorous  confinement.     A  large  proportion  of  the  inferior 

*  Bishop  Jewel  tells  us,  that  Bonner,  being  sent  to  the  Tower, 
"  went  to  see  some  criminals  that  were  kept  there,  and  called  them 
his  friends  and  neighbors;  but  one  of  them  answered,  <  6'o,  yow 
beast ^  into  hell,  and  find  your  friends  there  ;  for  we  are  none  of 
them.  I  killed  but  one  man  upon  a  provocation,  and  do  truly  re- 
pent of  it ;  but  you  have  killed  many  holy  persons,  of  all  sorts^ 
without  any  provocation  from  them,  and  are  hardened  in  your  im- 
penitence.'"—Burnet's  Records,  Vol.  V.  P.  III.  B.  VI.  pp.425, 
426. 


THE  NONCONFORMISTS.  231 

clergy,  readily  conformed,  and  kept  their  stations  in  the 
church.* 

Tlie  Nonconformists. 
But,  ahhough  the  Papists  generally,  found  it  so  easy  to 
reconcile  their  duty  and  their  interests,  it  was  far  otherwise 
with  many  of  the  stanchest  Protestants.  The  returned  ex- 
iles, particularly,  found  themselves  greatly  embarrassed 
and  burdened  by  the  doings  of  the  court.  The  oath  of  Su- 
premacy, after  some  explanation  from  the  queen,  they  took  : 
but  with  the  act  of  Uniformity,  as  passed  by  parliament, 
they  were  greatly  troubled.  Their  residence  among  the 
Reformed  churches  on  the  continent,  had  deeply  impressed 
them  with  the  importance  of  a  thorough,  scriptural  refor- 
mation of  the  church,  from  every  thing  which  savored  of 
Popery.  They  regarded  the  policy  of  the  court  as  tem- 
porizing and  dangerous.  The  copes,  and  square  caps,  and 
surplices,  which  the  clergy  were  commanded  to  wear,  were 
in  themselves,  things  indifferent  and  unimportant ;  but, 
they  were  regarded  by  the  people  as  essential  to  the  right 
performance  of  ecclesiastical  offices ;  and  were,  therefore, 
highly  objectionable,  because  they  served  to  confound  the 
old  religion  with  the  reformed,  in  the  minds  of  the  common 
people.  So  of  kneeling  at  the  sacrament ;  the  posture  was 
unimportant ;  but,  as  this  posture  had  been  assumed  by  the 
Papists  as  an  act  of  adoration  to  the  supposed  corporeal 
presence  of  Christ  in  the  consecrated  bread  and  wine ;  the 
Nonconformists  insisted,  that  it  was  countenancing  this  er- 

*  Hume  says,  out  of  nearly  10,000  parishes,  only  80  rec- 
tors and  vicars  resigned  ;  and  of  otlier  dignitaries  in  the  church, 
a  sufficient  number  to  make  up  a  sum  total  of  1G9.  Add  to  these, 
13  bishops,  and  we  have  182  in  all,  who  sacrificed  their  livings  to 
their  professed  faith. — Burnet  makes  the  number  199. — Neal  says, 
*' not  above  243  clergymen  quitted  their  livings." 


232  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ror  in  the  minds  of  the  vulgar,  to  enforce  the  practice  of 
kneeling  at  the  sacrament.  Crucifixes  might  remind  men 
of  Christ's  sufferings  and  death  ;  and  the  burning  candles^ 
that  he  was  the  light  of  the  world  ;  but,  these  things  had 
constituted  an  essential  part  of  the  Romish  worship,  and  for 
the  Protestant  church  to  retain  them,  was  to  retain  what  the 
people  would  regard  as  an  important  part  of  Romanism. 

Thus  reasoned  many  of  the  most  devoted  friends  of  the 
Protestant  religion  ;  who,  for  their  opposition  to  the  act  of 
Uniformity,  were  called — Nonconformists. 

The  court  party  insisted,  that,  as  these  things  were  non- 
essentials, it  was  unreasonable  stiffness  for  any  to  refuse 
compliance  with  the  established  order  of  the  church  ;  and 
accordingly  refused  to  relax  the  laws  in  favor  of  their  fel- 
low-sufferers for  Protestantism.  Several  of  the  learned  and 
devout  exiles  were  offered  bishoprics  and  other  preferments, 
which  they  utterly  refused,  because  their  consciences  would 
not  allow  them  to  give  any  countenance  to  the  idolatry  of 
Rome.  Among  these  were  such  men  as  Coverdale,  the 
translator  of  the  Bible,  and  Fox,  the  learned  Marty rologist. 
Others  accepted  of  preferment  with  trembling  ;  influenced 
chiefly  by  the  fear  of  utterly  stopping  the  Reformation  if 
all  refused  ;  and  with  the  hope  of  obtaining  some  modifica- 
tion of  the  laws  afterwards,  through  their  influence  with  the 
court;  such  were  Grindal,  and  Jewel,  and  others.  Indeed, 
it  would  seem  that  nearly  all  of  the  new  bishops  had  at  first, 
objections  to  the  popish  habits  enjoined  by  law,  and  submit- 
ted to  wear  them,  from  motives  of  policy,  rather  than  of 
choice.  Having,  however,  involved  themselves  with  the 
policy  of  the  court,  they  were  gradually  drawn  more  and 
more  into  the  high-church  doctrines  of  the  government ; 
and  some  of  these  conforming  bishops  became  bitter  perse- 
cutors of  all  who  scrupled  their  doubtful  compliance* 


THE  PURITANS.  233 

It  was  this  rock  of  offence  which  split  the  Protestants  of 
Elizabeth's  day.  The  controversy  did  not  originate  in  her 
reign,  but  in  Edward's, — as  I  have  already  remarked* — but, 
it  was  in  the  days  of  which  I  ann  now  writing  ( 1558 — 1570,) 
that  this  unhappy  controversy  was  most  fully  developed  ; 
and  produced,  for  the  time  being,  the  most  painful  conse- 
quences ;  though  ultimately  overruled  to  the  glory  of  God, 
in  the  development  and  establishment  of  purer,  simpler,  and 
more  scriptural  principles  of  Church  government  and 
worship. 

Origin  of  the  Puritans. 

The  division  which  began  among  the  Reformers  upon 
the  subject  of  habits  and  ceremonies,  gradually  widened 
until  two  distinct  parties  were  formed  in  the  kingdom,  the 
court  party  and  the  Puritans. 

The  Puritans  were  those  who  were  for  a  ptirer,  and 
more  simple  form  of  religious  worship  ; — who  were  in  favor 
of  carrying  the  Reformation  forward,  at  once,  to  the  stand- 
ard of  scriptural  truth,  so  far  as  rites,  and  ceremonies,  and 
discipline,  and  worship  were  concerned. 

The  court  party,  were  for  retaining  so  much  of  the  an- 
cient ceremonial  as  should  keep  the  people  quiet  and  easy 
ui]der  the  new  order  of  things,  and  make  religion  courtly 
and  attractive. 

The  division  began  as  I  have  described  ;  but  it  soon  in- 
volved other  points  of  difference.  The  principles  adopted 
by  the  respective  parties,  caused  them  to  diverge  further 
and  further  from  each  other,  until,  in  all  that  appertained 
to  the  outward  form  and  worship  of  the  church,  there  was 
an  incurable  difference  between  the  two  parties. 

*  See  back,  p.  200. 

20* 


234  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATION ALISBT, 

As  this  controversy  affected  materially  the  whole  subse- 
quent history  of  the  English  church,  and  is  intimately  con- 
nected with  the  history  of  Congregationalism,— it  may  be 
well  to  present  in  one  view,  the  chief  points  of  difference 
between  the  two  conflicting  parties. 

The  Court  Reformers  maintained  : 

1.  The  absolute  sovereignty  of  the  prince  over  the 
church  ;  his  right  to  determine  the  articles  of  faith,  and  the 
rites,  and  ceremonies  of  the  church ;  provided  his  decrees 
were  not  repugnant  to  the  Word  of  God,  or  the  statute  law 
of  the  realm  ;  but  the  court  were  the  only  authorized  judges 
as  to  what  was  repugnant  to  the  laws  of  God,  and  of  the 
realm. 

2.  That  the  church  of  Rome  was  a  true  church,  though 
somewhat  corrupted  ;  consequently,  that  her  clergy  were 
in  the  apostolic  succession,  and  that  their  ministrations 
were  valid. 

3.  That  the  Scriptures  were  not  a  standard  of  discipline, 
or  church  government;  but,  that  the  practice  of  the  primi- 
tive church  for  the  first  four  or  five  centuries  was  a  much 
more  perfect  standard,  and  better  suited  to  the  splendor  of 
a  national  establishment. 

4.  That  things  in  themselves  indifferent, — being  neither 
commanded  nor  forbidden  in  the  Scriptures, — might  be  en- 
joined by  the  civil  magistrate,  and  enforced  upon  subjects 
by  pains  and  penalties. 

The  Puritans  maintained : 

1.  That  the  extensive  claim  of  the  prince,  to  regulate 
and  alter  the  religion  of  the  nation,  was  unreasonable  and 
unscriptural ;  they  thought  that  the  clergy  should  have  the 


THE  PURITANS.  235 

principal  share  in  such  a  work,  subject  to  the  advice,  coun- 
sel, and  supervision  of  the  king. 

2.  That  the  pope,  so  far  from  being  a  true  bishop,  was 
the  very  antichrist  of  Scripture  ;  and  the  church  of  Rome, 
no  true  church  ;  and  her  ministrations,  superstitious  and 
idolatrous  ;  and,  that  it  was  unsafe  to  rest  the  validity  of 
clerical  ordinations  on  an  apostolic  succession  coming 
through  such  polluted  channels  as  the  church  of  Rome 
furnished. 

3.  That  the  Scriptures  were  a  standard  of  church  gov- 
ernm.ent  and  discipline,  as  well  as  of  doctrine  ;  so  far,  at 
least,  that  nothing  should  be  insisted  on  which  was  not  ex- 
pressly enjoined  in  the  Scriptures,  or  fairly  deducible  from 
them  :  and  that  no  church  officers  or  ordinances  should  be 
allowed  in  the  Christian  church  which  are  not  recognized 
in  the  New  Testament. 

4.  That  things  which  Christ  had  left  indifferent,  ought  not 
to  be  imposed  upon  men  by  any  human  laws ;  and  that 
such  riles  and  ceremonies  and  vestments  as  had  been 
abused  to  idolatry,  and  were  intimately  associated  in  the 
minds  of  men  with  Popery  itself,  were  not  indifferent 
things,  but  positively  dangerous  to  true  religion,  and  there- 
fore sinful.* 

The  above,  are  the  chief  points  of  difference  which  sep- 
arated, and  finally  alienated  the  Protestants  of  Elizabeth's 
reign  from  each  other. 

In  addition  to  th^se  principal  points,  there  were  several 
other  things  which  the  Puritans  disliked,  and  earnestly  de- 
sired to  have  reformed. — They  complained,  that  the  bishops 
assumed  to  be  a  superior  order  to  presbyters,  and  claimed 
the  sole  right  to  ordain,  and  exercise  ecclesiastical  disci- 
pline.— They  complained  of  the  exorbitant  power  of  the 

*  See  Neal,  Vol.  I.  Chap.  4.  passim;  particularly  pp.  182 — 185. 


236  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

bishop's  courts. — Of  the  promiscuous  communion  of  the 
ungodly  and  the  godly  at  the  Lord's  table. — They  objected 
to  the  confinement  of  the  church  to  a  written  form  of 
prayer,  on  all  occasions, — to  the  reading  of  the  Apocrypha 
in  the  churches,— to  sundry  festivals  of  the  church, — to  the 
sign  of  the  cross  in  baptism, — to  the  use  of  godfathers  and 
godmothers  to  the  exclusion  of  parents, — to  the  confirma- 
tion of  children,  and  their  consequent  admission  to  the 
Lord's  table,  as  soon  as  they  could  repeat  the  Lord's  Prayer, 
and  their  Catechism  ;  and  to  several  other  rites  and  ordi- 
nances enjoined  in  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer. 

To  all  these  things  they  felt  objections  ;  but  still,  it  does 
not  appear  that  the  continuance  of  these  grievances  would 
have  prevented  the  general  conformity  of  the  Puritans,  if 
upon  other  points  they  had  been  made  easy.  At  how  early 
a  period  their  several  objections  to  the  hierarchal  worship 
became  common  among  the  Puritans,  it  is  not  easy,  per- 
haps, to  decide  ;  it  seems  pretty  evident,  however,  that  they 
prevailed  extensively  within  the  first  ten  years  of  Eliza- 
beth's reign.* 

The  court,  following  out  their  principles,  made  the  gov- 
ernment of  church  and  state  little  short  of  an  absolute  des- 
potism. The  church  was  kept  on  the  very  verge  of  Popery 
during  this,  and  the  two -succeeding  reigns;  and  all  civil, 
as  well  as  ecclesiastical  liberty  would  have  been  utterly  ex- 
tinguished in  the  nation,  but  for  the  determined,  and  self- 
denying  opposition  of  the  Puritans. 

The  work  of  persecution  for  not  wearing  the  habits,  and 
for  refusing  the  idolatrous  ceremonies  of  the  hierarchy, 
seems  to  have  begun  openly,  in  the  spring  of  L563  ;  when 
the  Reverend  Thomas  Sampson,  dean  of  Christ's  church, 

*  See  Neal,  Chap.  5. 


THE  PURITANS.  237 

and  Dr.  Lawrence  Humphreys,  regius  professor  of  divinity 
at  Oxford,  and  president  of  Magdalen  College, — "  men  of 
high  renown  throughout  the  nation,  for  learning,  piety, 
and  zeal  for  the  Reformation,  and  exiles  for  religion  in 
queen  Mary's  reign,"— were  summoned  before  the  high- 
commission  court,  and  told  peremptorily,  that  they  must 
conform  to  the  habits,  i.  e. — wear  the  square  cap  and  long 
gown,  and  the  surplice  and  non-regent's  hood,  and  must 
kneel  and  receive  the  wafer-bread  at  the  sacrament,  or  lose 
their  preferments.  They  replied,  that  their  consciences 
would  not  allow  them  to  do  these  things,  let  the  consequen- 
ces be  what  they  might.  Upon  which  they  were  imme- 
diately imprisoned,  and  lost  their  preferments. 

About  the  same  time,  the  Puritan  clergy  of  London  were 
summoned  before  the  commissioners,  and  thus  addressed  : 
"  My  masters  and  ye  ministers  of  London,  the  council's 
pleasure  is,  that  ye  strictly  keep  the  unity  of  apparel,  like 
this  man  who  stands  here  canonically  habited  with  a  square 
cap,  a  scholar's  gown  priest-like,  [and]  a  tippet ;  and  in 
the  church,  a  linen  surplice.  Ye  that  will  subscribe,  write 
Volo  ;  those  that  will  not  subscribe,  write  JSolo :  Be  brief, 
make  no  words."*  When  the  ministers  offered  to  speak, 
they  were  commanded  to  hold  their  peace  ;  their  names 
were  immediately  called  over,  and  they  were  bid  to  say, 
yea^  or  nay^  at  once.  Out  of  100,  there  were  61  who  sub- 
scribed FoZo,  and  37  who  absolutely  refused  ;  and  among 
them,  some  of  the  best  preachers  in  London ;  all  of  whom 
were  immediately  suspended,  and  forbidden  to  exercise 
their  ministry.  Archbishop  Parker  was  the  leader  in  these 
iniquitous  prosecutions  against  the  nonconforming  Puritans. 

*  Neal,  Vol.  I.  p.  23G. — A  clergyman  was  placed  before  them, 
dressed  out  in  full  canonicals,  as  a  pattern  to  which  tlie,  Puritans 
were  required  to  conform. 


238  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

The  consequences  of  these  proceedings  were,  that 
many  of  the  churches  of  London  were  shut  up,  and  thou- 
sands of  the  people  were  deprived  of  the  Word  of  Life. 
The  silenced  ministers  were  compelled  to  preach  privately 
and  without  authority,  to  abandon  their  profession  and  turn 
their  attention  to  secular  pursuits  ;  or  to  go  out  of  the  king- 
dom. Some  few  of  them  became  chaplains  in  private  gen- 
tlemen's families,  and  there  sowed  the  seed  in  the  minds  of 
the  rising  generation,— the  fruit  of  which  was  seen  in  after 
years.  Some  of  the  ministers  who  had  large  families 
were  reduced  to  absolute  beggary. 

By  these  severities  the  people  were  irritated  against  the 
prelates  almost  to  rebellion  ;  and  scoffed  and  railed  upon 
them  as  they  went  by  ;  Whitgift  says,  actually  "  spit  in 
their  faces."  But  little  did  archbishop  Parker  care  for  all 
these  things. 

To  make  clean  work  of  it,  the  archbishop  soon  called  in  all 
the  licences  to  preach  the  gospel,  throughout  his  province, 
and  required  all  preachers  to  take  out  new  ones.  And  be- 
fore he  would  grant  them,  he  demanded  an  oath  of  entire, 
and  slavish  submission  to  the  queen,  to  the  privy  council, 
to  his  grace  of  Canterbury,  and  "  to  the  articles  and  man- 
dates of  their  bishop,  archdeacon,  chancellors,"  etc. — "  in 
a  word,"  says  Mr.  Neal,  "  to  be  subject  to  the  control  of  all 
their  superiors  with  patience."*  To  carry  out  his  plans, 
his  grace  appointed  spies  and  informers  in  every  parish  ; 
to  watch  the  Puritans — both  minister  and  people — and  to 
give  information  under  oath  respecting  all  deviations  from 
strict  ecclesiastical  conformity. 

Notwithstanding  all,  Puritanism  increased — both  among 
the  learned,  and  the  common  people.     Cambridge  became 

*  Neal.  Vol.  I.  p.  241. 


THE  ERA  OF  SEPARATION.  239 

"  a  nest  of  Puritans,"  and  the  people  flocked  by  hundreds 
to  hear  the  suspended  ministers,  whenever  and  wherever 
they  ventured  to  preach. 

In  the  year  1566,  these  sufferers  for  conscience  sake 
published  to  the  world  a  vindication  of  their  conduct,  in  re- 
fusing the  Popish  habits  and  ceremonies.  This  was  an- 
swered by  the  archbishop,  or  some  of  his  partizans.  Other 
pamphlets  followed  from  the  Puritans.  At  length  the 
bishops  finding  that  the  controversy  was  extending  the  evil 
which  they  sought  to  suppress, — that  the  people  were 
eagerly  reading  the  pamphlets  and  books  of  the  suspend- 
ed ministers,  and  imbibing  their  principles, — procured  a 
decree  of  the  star-chamber,*  forbidding  any  person  to  print 
or  publish  any  Puritan  books  or  pamphlets,  and  requiring 
"all  stationers,  booksellers,  and  merchants  trading  in  books," 
to  enter  into  bonds  to  observe  the  decree  of  the  council.^ 

The  Era  of  Separation. 
These  violent  proceedings,  instead  of  forcing  the  objects 
of  them  into  conformity,  drove  many  of  them  further  than 
ever  from  the  persecuting  hierarchy. 

*  The  Star-chaviber  Court,  was  composed  of  some  20  or  30  noble- 
men, bishops,  judges  and  counsellors.  These  were  nominated  by 
the  queen.  When  she  was  present,  the  others  were  mere  counsel- 
lors ;  in  her  absence,  all  questions  were  decided  by  a  vote  of  the 
majority.  This  court  sustained  very  nearly  the  same  relation  to 
the  ci»i7  affairs  of  the  kingdom  which  tiie  high-commission  court 
did  to  the  ecclesiastical  affairs,  lioth  courts  were  downright  in- 
quisitions. They  were  the  curse  and  terror  of  the  nation  during 
this,  and  the  two  following  reigns.  Hume  says  :  *'  The  courts, 
alone,  of  high-commission  and  the  star-chamber,  were  sufficient 
to  lay  the  whole  kingdom  at  the  mercy  of  the  prince." — See  Ap- 
pendix to  James  I.  p.  267,  and  App.  HI.  to  Elizabeth,  p.  245.  Also 
Neal,  Vol.  I.  Chap.  8.  pp.  ,503,504. 

,t  Neal,  Vol.  I.  pp.  250,  251. 


240  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Near  the  end  of  August  1566,  the  suspended,  disfran* 
chised,  and  silenced  Puritans  nnet  to  debate  the  question, 
whether,  in  their  present  situation,  shut  out  as  they  were 
from  the  national  church,  and  silenced,  and  persecuted  by 
her  governors — it  was  not  their  duty  to  withdraw  entirely 
from  the  church  of  England,  and  set  up  separate  congre- 
gations, in  private  places,  as  they  should  have  opportunity  ; 
there  to  worship  God  with  simple  and  scriptural  rites  and 
ceremonies,  such  as  their  consciences  approved.  "  After 
prayer  and  a  serious  debate,"  they  came  to  an  affirmative 
decision  of  this  important  question  ;  and  thus  introduced 
a  new  era  in  the  ecclesiastical  history  of  England, —  The 
Era  of  Separation. 

The  persecuted  ministers  found  multitudes  ready  to  fol- 
low them  to  the  woods,  or  any  place  of  concealment,  where 
they  might  worship  God  without  "  idolatrous  geare.''''  The 
queen  and  her  bishops  were  soon  upon  the  scent ;  and  in 
June  of  the  next  year,  (1567,)  a  congregation  of  100  per- 
sons was  discovered  at  Plumber's  Hall,  London,  most  of 
whom  were  taken  into  custody ;  and,  after  an  examination 
before  the  bishop  of  London,  between  20  and  30  of  them, 
with  Bolton  one  of  their  elders  were  sent  to  Bridewell ; 
where  they  remained — men  and  women— in  close  confine- 
ment for  more  than  a  year.* 

The  next  year,  (1568,)  the  queen  was  brought  to  the 
verge  of  death  by  sickness  ;  and  the  Protestant  religion  was 
in  the  greatest  peril ;  for  the  queen  of  Scots,  the  presump- 
tive heir  to  the  English  crown,  was  a  zealous  Papist.  Still 
Bridewell,  and  the  other  prisons  were  full  of  Puritans.  The 
queen  recovered,  and  the  work  of  persecution  went  on. 
The  reins  of  government  were  drawn  more  tightly,  and 
the  lash  of  discipline  was  applied  more  freely  and  severely. 

■*  See  Prince,  New  Eng.  Chronology,  Sec.  11,  p.  302. 


THE  ERA  OF  SEPARATION.  241 

These  violent  efforts  of  the  queen  and  her  hierarchy  to 
force  men's  consciences,  made,  doubtless,  many  hypocrites  ; 
but  still  increased  the  number  of  the  Puritans.  Another 
effect  of  these  courtly  measures,  was,  to  open  the  eyes  of 
men  to  the  inconsistency  of  the  entire  establishment  with 
the  teachings  of  Christ  and  his  apostles.  From  the  days 
of  John  Wickliffe,  there  had  been  floating  among  the  Eng- 
lish people,  the  detached  principles  of  Congregational  dis- 
sent. These  principles,  though  smothered  by  the  persecu- 
tion of  the  Lollards,  as  already  related— were  not  extin- 
guished. The  partial  Reformation  under  Henry  VllI,  gave 
them  new  life.  The  more  thorough  Reformation  under 
Edward  VI,  recognizing  some  of  these  very  principles  of 
dissent,  served,  probably,  to  reconcile  those  who  had  em- 
braced them,  to  the  established  Church  ;  while,  at  the  same 
time,  it  confirmed  them  in  the  belief  of  their  favorite  prin- 
ciples. 

Mary's  persecuting  reign  drove  back  the  quieted  Dissent- 
ers, to  their  first  principles  again.  The  probability  that 
there  were  secret  congregations  of  these  persons,  in  differ- 
ent parts  of  the  kingdom  during  the  reign  of  Popery,  has 
already  been  considered.  Abroad,  among  the  English  ex- 
iles, some  of  these  principles  were  certainly  developed, 
as  we  have  already  seen. 

On  the  return  of  the  exiles  to  England,  after  the  acces- 
sion of  Elizabeth,  the  force  of  education  and  the  spirit  of 
the  times,  which  ran  so  strongly  for  national  establishments, 
— would  doubtless  have  drawn  most  of  those  who  prefer- 
red a  simple  form  of  church  government  and  worship,  into 
the  establishment,  had  there  been  a  suitable  regard  mani- 
fested for  the  conscientious  scruples  of  the  Puritans.  Eliza- 
beth, however,  had  no  notion  of  framing  her  establishment 
to  accommodate  men  of  squeamish  stomachs^  as  the  Puri- 
21 


242  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

tans  were  cousidered.  Her  deternfilnalion  was  to  have  an 
ostentatious  national  church  ;  and  to  compel  all  her  subjects 
to  conform,  outwardly  at  least,  to  the  order  of  the  church. 
She  cared  not,  she  said,  to  ransack  people's  consciences  ; 
but  outward  conformity  she  must  and  would  have,  or  she 
would  hew  them  into  shape.  But  this  was  found  no  easy 
task.  The  more  she  hewed  the  rougher  some  of  her  ma- 
terials grew  ;  and  the  more  unlikely  to  become  polished 
stones  in  her  idolatrous  temple. 

The  very  severity  of  the  queen  and  the  bishops  drove 
back  the  Puritans  to  first  principles,  and  to  a  more  thorough 
examination  of  the  whole  frame-work  of  church  polity. 
Tlie  scattered  elements  of  Wickliffism  were  collected  to- 
gether ;  the  convincing  light  of  experience  was  thrown 
upon  the  sacred  page  ;  the  writings  of  the  earliest  fathers 
of  the  church  were  examined  ;  and  the  result  was,  the  full 
discovery  and  development  of  those  great  principles  of 
church  polity  on  which  have  been  erected  the  thousands  of 
churches  now  known  as  Congregational. 

But  I  am  anticipating  the  course  of  historical  detail.  To 
return  to  the  history.  The  bishop's  spies  were  now,  ( 1570,) 
in  every  suspected  place  ;  many  learned  and  pious  minis- 
ters, and  devout  laymen,  had  been  arrested,  dragged  be- 
fore these  spiritual  inquisitions — the  high-commissions  and 
bishop's  courts — compelled  to  turn  their  own  accusers  ; 
abused  by  their  lordly  judges,  and  fined  and  imprisoned  at 
their  discretion  ;  and  all  for  what?  For  worshipping  God 
in  private  houses  and  in  the  woods,  without  the  help  of  the 
Common  Prayer  Book,  or  the  adornment  of  the  square  cap, 
and  cope,  and  surplice.  For  such  crimes  many  were  re- 
duced to  the  last  extremity  of  want  and  sufl^ering  ;  so  that 
their  very  jailors  were  touched   with  pity  ;  testifying  that 


ROBERT    BROWNE.  243 

their  prisoners  had  not  wherewithal  to  purchase  food,  or 
firing  ;  for  lack  of  which,  numbers  perished  in  prison. 


CHAPTER  XITI. 

ROBERT  BROWNE. — THE  BROWNISTS. 

Having  laid  before  the  reader  a  summary  view  of  eccle- 
siastical affairs  during  the  first  twelve  years  of  Elizabeth's 
reign,  we  are  now  to  open  a  new  chapter  in  the  history  of 
our  denomination.  We  have  hitherto  considered  Congre- 
gationalism rather  in  its  principles  and  doctrines,  as  occa- 
sionally developed  by  those  of  other  professions  and  con- 
nections;  we  have  contemplated  it  in  its  isolated  and  par- 
tially developed  elements.  We  are  now  to  see  these  scat- 
tered elements  collected  ;  and  to  view  Congregationalism 
in  its  embodied  form. 

The  unworthy  instrument,  whose  labors  are  first  to  be 
noticed,  is  Robert  Browne.  This  man  has  the  honor  of 
being  the  first  open  and  persecuted  advocate  of  Congrega- 
tional principles  of  church  polity  during  this  reign.  And 
by  most  historians  he  has  been  reckoned  as  the  very  father 
of  our  denomination.  But,  not  to  revert  to  the  statements 
already  made,  showing  that  there  were  persons  in  England 
who  entertained  the  same  general  principles,  long  before 
Browne  was  heard  of — perhaps  before  he  was  born — it  is 
manifest  from  the  history  of  this  man's  contemporaries  and 
fellow-sufferers  for  the  truth,  that  there  were  other  and 
more  worthy  instruments  in  this  work  than  Robert  Browne  ; 
— men  of  piety  and  learning  in  the  different  professions  of 


244  HISTORY  OF  COWGREGATIONALISBI. 

divinity,  law  and  medicine — who,  though  they  embraced 
for  substance  the  same  ecclesiastical  views,  yet  called  no 
man  master  ;  yea,  and  some  of  them  did  not  so  much  as 
know  precisely  what  Browne's  opinions  were.  If  it  should 
be  thought  strange  that  men,  without  a  knowledge  of  each 
other's  sentiments,  should  embrace  substantially  the  same 
view  ;  let  it  be  remembered,  that  these  men  all  started  up- 
on the  same  great  principle — the  entire  sufficiency  of  the 
Scriptures  to  instruct  them  respecting  the  polity,  as 
well  as  the  faith  of  the  church.  And  drawing  their  know- 
ledge from  the  same  inspired  source,  it  is  not  strange  at  all 
that  they  embraced  the  same  general  principles  of  church 
government  and  discipline.  Indeed,  England  was  full  of 
these  principles  and  doctrines,  suppressed  and  kept  out  of 
sight  by  the  severity  of  the  times,  but  ready  to  burst  out, 
and  consolidate  in  open  separation  from  the  persecuting 
hierarchy,  so  soon  as  suitable  leaders  could  be  found  to 
encourage  and  guide  the  common  mind.  Browne  was  a 
man  well  fitted  to  stir  up  the  popular  mind  ;  yea,  to  fan  it 
into  a  flame. 

Robert  Browne  was  born  1550,  a  descendant  of  an  an- 
cient and  honorable  family  in  Rutlandshire.*  He  was  a 
near  relative  of  Cecil — afterwards  lord  Burleigh — Eliza- 
beth's favorite  secretary  of  state,  and  lord  high  treasurer  of 
England. 

Browne  was  educated  at  Cambridge;  and  was  somewhat 
distinguished  as  a  scholar.  He  was  first  a  schoolmaster  ; 
and  afterwards  a  preacher.     As  a  preacher,  he  gained  con- 

*  It  is  mentioned  by  Bogue  and  Bennet,  (His.  of  Dissenters) 
that  one  of  Browne's  ancestors  enjoyed  the  chartered  privilege, 
from  Henry  VHl,  <' of  wearing  his  cap  in  the  presence  of  the  king, 
or  his  heirs,  or  any  lords  spiritual  or  temporal  ;  and  not  to  put  it 
off  but  for  his  own  ease  or  pleasure." 


ROBERT  BROWNE.  245 

siderable  reputation  among  the  common  people,  by  the 
earnestness  of  his  manner,  and  the  vehemence  of  his  de- 
livery. He  early  distinguished  himself  by  his  puritan  zeal ; 
and  at  the  age  of  twenty-one  or  two,  became  a  leader 
among  the  Puritans  in  and  about  London.  In  June,  1571, 
with  ten  others,  whom  Neal  calls  "  the  chief  Puritans  about 
London," — he  was  summoned  before  the  archbishop,  to  an- 
swer for  his  non-conformity.  He  offered  to  subscribe  to 
the  doctrinal  articles,  and  ihe  sacraments  of  the  church  of 
England,  and  to  use  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  "  as  far 
as  it  tended  to  edification  ;"  but,  refused  entire  conformity 
to  the  order,  and  government,  and  discipline  of  the  church. 
With  this  subscription  the  archbishop  would  not  be  satisfied  ; 
and  nothing  but  the  interposition  of  powerful  friends,  shield- 
ed Browne  from  the  fury  of  the  law. 

We  next  hear  of  him,  travelling  up  and  down  the  coun- 
try, inveighing  against  the  ceremonies  and  discipline  of  the 
church,  and  exhorting  the  people  not  to  conform  to  them. 

The  bishop  of  Norwich  soon  took  him  in  hand,  and  de- 
livered him  to  the  sheriff  of  the  county  ;  this  was  in  1580, 
or  1581.*     Browne  acknowledged  his  offence,  and  was  re- 

*  Hanbury,  (''  Historical  Memorials,"  Vol.1,  pp.  19, '20,)  has 
preserved  two  letters  of  Dr.  Freke,then  (1581)  bishop  of  Norwich, 
in  which  he  complains  to  Cecil  most  biiterly,of  Browne's  conduct 
and  influence  in  his  lordship's  diocese,  he  says:  "  His  arrogant 
spirit  of  reproving  being  such  as  is  to  be  marvelled  at,  the  man  be- 
ing also  to  be  feared,  lest,  if  he  were  at  liberty,  he  would  seduce  the 
vulgar  sort  of  the  people  who  greatly  depend  on  him,  assembling 
themselves  to  the  number  of  a  hundred  at  a  time,  in  private  houses 
and  conventicles,  to  hear  him,  not  without  danger  of  some  therea- 
bout." In  another  letter,  his  lordship  hints  that  Brown  was  link- 
ed at,  if  not  of  policy  set  on,  by  certain  ^'gentlemen." 

The  bishop  does  not  appear  to  suspect  Cecil  himself,  of"  wink- 

21* 


246  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

leased.  But,  though  he  acknowledged  his  offence  against 
the  ecclesiastical  laws  of  the  realm,  he  does  not  seem  to 
have  promised  amendment ;  or,  if  he  did,  he  soon  broke  his 
promise  :  for  in  1582,  he  published  a  work  entitled :  "  A 
Book  which  showeth  the  Life  and  Manner  of  all  true  Chris- 
tians^^'' to  which  was  prefixed,  "^  treatise  on  Reformation, 
without  tarrying  for  any  :  and  of  the  tvickedness  of  those 
preachers  who  will  not  reform  themselves  arid  their  charge, 
because  they  will  tarry  till  the  magistrate  command  and 
compel  them.''''* 

The  title  of  his  book  illustrates  the  temper  of  the  man, 
and  the  nature  of  his  principles.  This  publication  pro- 
cured him  a  third  arrest.  Through  lord  Burleigh  he  soon 
obtained  his  release  again  :    after  which  he  returned  to  his 

ing  at"  Browne's  movements,  but  others  have  ventured  to  as- 
sert, that  it  is  altogether  possible  that  it  was  even  so. 

*  This  book  was  printed  at  Middleburgh,  by  Richard  Painter. 
1582.  4to.  pp.  112.  "The  contents  are  comprised  in  1^5  questions 
and  propositions  in  tabular  columns  :  headed,  The  state  of  Chris- 
tians ;  *  *  The  state  of  Heathen;  *  *  The  Antichristian  state; 
■*  ■*  The  Jewish  state.  The  whole  is  reduced  into  analytical  prin- 
ciples in  phrases  and  single  words.  The  book  is  an  e.\cellent  speci- 
men of  typographical  arrangement,  and  is  excessively  scarce." — 
Hanhury. 

As  J  shall  have  occasion  to  refer  very  often  to  Mr.  Hanbury's 
invaluable  work,  it  may  be  well  to  state,  that  Benjamin  Hanbury 
one  of  the  deacons  of  the  first  Congregational  church  which  was 
formed  in  England,  is  the  learned  editor  of  Hooker's  Ecc.  Fblity 
and  other  works,  the  author  of  an  Inquiry  concerning  the  First 
Congregational  Church  in  England,  and  more  recently,  of  one  of 
great  labor  and  value,  entitled  :  "  Historical  Memorials  relating  to 
the  Independents,  or  Congregationalists  ;"  containing  copious  ex- 
tracts from  the  writings  of  all  the  early  Congregationalists.  But 
one  volume  has  yet  been  published.  Svo.  pp.  607.  fine  print.  Lon- 
don. 


ROBERT  BROWNE.  247 

father's  house,  where  he  remained  quiet  four  years.  His 
spirit  being  again  stirred  within  him,  we  soon  find  him 
with  an  assistant,  Richard  Harrison,  travelling  up  and 
down  the  country,  preaching  his  peculiar  sentiments,  and 
stirring  up  the  people  to  revolt  from  the  Established  Church. 
What  his  peculiar  views  upon  church  polity  were,  will  ap- 
pear from  the  following  summary. 

Broivne's  sentiments. 

He  maintained — That  the  Church  of  England  was  anti- 
christian  in  her  polity,  and  that  her  officers  were  unscriptu- 
ral  in  their  character  and  appointment.— He  denied  the  right 
of  the  throne  to  exercise  jurisdiction  over  the  affairs  of  the 
church, — He  recognized  the  injunctions  of  the  Scriptures, 
and  the  authorized  practice  of  the  apostolic  churches  as  the 
only  sources  from  which  instruction  relative  to  church  or- 
der and  discipline  should  be  drawn  :  and  insisted  that  these 
authorities  required, — that  "  a  church  should  be  confined 
within  the  limits  of  a  single  congregation  ;"  and  should  con- 
sist of  such  only,  as  "  made  a  confession  of  their  faith,  in 
the  presence  of  each  other,  and  signed  a  covenant,  obliging 
themselves  to  walk  together  in  the  order  of  the  gospel,  ac- 
cording to  certain  rules  and  agreements  therein  contained." 
— He  believed  that  the  Scriptures  gave  "  the  whole  power  of 
admitting  and  excluding  members,  with  the  deciding  of  all 
controversies,  to  the  brotherhood." — That  church  officers 
should  be  chosen  from  the  church,  by  the  votes  of  the  breth- 
ren ;  and  the  preachers,  at  least,  should  be  separated  to 
their  work,  by  fasting  and  prayer,  and  the  imposition  of  the 
hands  of  the  brethren. — He  seems  to  have  recognized  jive 
kindsof  office  bearers  in  the  church,  viz.  a  Pastor,  a  Teacher, 
Elders  or  ancients.  Relievers  or  deacons,  and  Widows. — 
He  maintained,  that,  as  the  vole  of  the  church  could  make 


248  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

church  officers,  so,  it  could  reduce  them  again  lo  mere  lay- 
men ;  not  allowing  the  priesthood  to  be  a  distinct  order 
from  the  laity. — He  confined  the  labors  of  a  minister  to  his 
own  church  ;  recognizing  no  authority  in  the  pastor  of  one 
church  to  administer  the  ordinances  to  another  church. — 
All  the  brethren  of  a  church  were  allowed,  by  him,  license 
to  ask  questions  of  the  preacher  in  their  public  asseniblies, 
and  to  confer  together  upon  the  subject  matter  of  his  ser- 
mons,— He  held  that  one  church  could  exercise  no  jurisdic- 
tion over  another ;  though  it  might  give  advice,  counsel, 
and  even  reproof;  and,  if  needful,  withdraw  fellowship 
from  such  as  walked  disorderly. — Every  church,  in  all 
other  respects,  was  considered  by  him  as  entirely  indepen- 
dent.— "  In  shorty  every  church,  or  society  of  Christians 
meeting  in  one  place,  loas,  according  to  the  Brownists, 
A  BODY  CORPORATE,  having  full  power  within  itself  to  ad- 
mit and  exclude  members,  to  choose  and  ordain  officers ;  and, 
when  the  good  of  the  society  required  it,  to  depose  them ; 
without  being  accountable  to  classis,  convocations,  synods, 
councils,  or  ajiy  jurisdiction  ivhatever.''''  * 

It  is  evident  from  this  account  of  Brownism,  that,  in  its 
essential  features,  it  corresponded  with  Congregationalism, 
as  since  established  in  New  England, 

These  sentiments  were  first  openly  advocated  about  the 
year  1580. 

First  separate  Congregation  of  Brownists. 
About  the  year  1583,  the  first  separate  congregation  was 

*  NeaJ,  Vol.  I.  pp.  378—380  ;    Hanbury,  Vol.  I.  Chap.  2  passim  ; 
Neal's  Hist,  of  New  England,  Vol.  1.  pp.  61— 65. 


ROBERT   BROWNE.  249 

gathered  upon  these  principles.*  Its  existence  had  scarce- 
ly commenced,  however,  before  the  queen  and  her  bishops 
laid  violent  hands  upon  it  ;  the  congregation  was  broken 
up;  and  many  of  the  members,  together  with  Browne  him- 
self, fled  to  Holland  ;  the  refuge  of  all  the  oppressed  Pro- 
testants of  those  days.  At  Middleburgh,  in  the  state  of 
Zealand,  the  refugees  found  a  resting-place  from  oppres- 
sion ;  and  were  permitted  to  organize  a  church  on  their 
own  principles.f 

In  a  little  time, — from  some  cause  not  certainly  known, 
— dissensions  arose  among  the  brethren  of  this  church. 
Browne  abandoned  them  ;  and  with  a  few  adherents  re- 
treated to  Scotland,  as  early  as  1584  ;  where  he  sowed  his 
"j907?p/e,"  —  as  king  James  I.  says,  among  the  Scots. 
From  Scotland  he  returned,  the  next  year,  into  England  ;| 
and  so  far  conformed,  as  to  obtain  a  rectorship  in  North- 
hamptonshire,  ''  and  that  none  of  the  meanest."  It  is 
doubtful,  however,  whether  he  ever  renounced  his  princi- 
ples of  church  polity  ;  for,  he  never  preached  in  his 
church,  but  supplied  it  by  a  curate;  and  Fuller,  (Chh.  His.) 
who  had  known  Browne,  says  :  "  I  will  never  believe  that 
he  ever  formally  recanted  his  opinions,  either  by  word  or 
writing,  as  to  the  main  of  what  he  maintained."§ 

After  his  return  to  England,  his  life   is  represented  to 


*  JNeal  says  :  In  1586  ;  but  Hanbury's  account  requires  it  to  be 
put  two  or  three  years,  at  least,  earlier.  See  Vol.  1.  p.  2*2. 

t  Lucy  Ailiin,in  her  M--moirs  of  the  Court  of  Queen  Elizabeth, 
says  :  "  He  founded  several  churclies  "  in  Holland.  Quoted  in  App. 
to  Barklie's  His.  Memoir  of  Ply.  Colony,  Vol.  II. 

X  Neal  says,  in  15b0  ;  but  Hanbury,  who  is  tlie  best  authority, 
says,  1585. 

§   Quoted  b}'  Hanbury,  p.  24. 


250  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

have  been  idle,  immoral,  and  dissolute.*  At  length,  his 
poverty,  pride,  and  passion,  involved  him  in  a  quarrel  with 
the  constable  of  his  parish  ;  which  resulted  in  the  commit- 
ment of  the  decrepit  old  man  to  the  Northampton  gaol  ;  to 
which  place  he  was  carried  upon  his  bed  in  a  cart,  being 
unable  to  walk.  Here  he  soon  sickened  and  died,  in  the 
year  1630,  and  in  the  eighty-first  of  his  age,  unloved  and 
unwept. 

Thus  perished  in  disgrace,  a  man  who  had  discernment 
to  discover,  and  courage  to  advocate,  some  of  the  soundest 
principles  of  church  polity  which  the  world  has  ever  known  ; 
principles,  which  required  only  to  be  cleared  of  the  im- 
purities with  which  the  temper  of  the  man,  and  the  spirit 
of  the  age  had  tarnished  them,  to  shine  forth  as  lights  to 
the  church,  and  a  blessing  to  the  world. 

The  church  in  Middleburgh,  in  the  mean  time,  being  for- 
saken of  its  pastor,  and  rent  with  internal  dissensions,  soon 
crumbled  to  pieces  and  perished. f 

Frequent  attempts  have  been  made  to  cast  reproach  on 
Congregationalists  by  reference  to  the  exceptionable  char- 
acter and  miserable  end  of  Browne  ;  but  let  the  candid  of 
all  parties  judge  who  have  the  most  occasion  to  be  ashamed 
of  their  relation  to  Robert  Browne.  While  he  was  accused 
of  nothing  but  enmity  towards  the  anti-scriptural  character 
of  the  church  of  England,  he  was  persecuted  and  hunted 
down  like  a  wild  beast:  thirty-two  times  he  was  imprisoned. 


*  Pagit,  quoted  by  Hanbury,  p.  24,  note  e,  says:  '<  Old  father 
Browne  being  reproved  for  beating  his  old  wife,  distinguished,  that 
he  did  not  beat  her  as  his  wife,  but  as  a  curst  old  woman." 

t  Harrison,  Browne's  associate  and  assistant,  seems  to  have  re- 
mained at  Middleburgh,  where  he  died  in  the  faith  which  he  had 
labored  to  defend — ''  in  this  faith,"  says  Ainsworth,  '•  that  we  pro- 
fess."— Hanbury,  p.  172. 


ROBERT  BROWNE.  '  251 

But,  when  he  professed  coriforinity  to  her  rites  and  cere- 
monies, he  was  received  to  the  bosonn  of  the  hierarchy,  and 
retained  in  her  embrace,  though  openly  immoral,  dissolute, 
and  abandoned  ;  thus  showing,  as  Pierce,  in  his  "  Vindica- 
tion of  Dissenters,"  shrewdly  remarks, — That  "  our  adver- 
saries are  more  strict  in  punishing  men  for  disparaging 
their  constitution^  than  for  transgressing  the  undoubted  laws 
of  Christr* 

Progress  oj  Broivnism.—T hacker  and  Copping  executed^ 
1583. 

In  order  to  present  a  connected  view  of  Browne's  life,  I 
have  disregarded  the  chronological  order  of  our  history. 
I  now  resume. 

The  principles  and  doctrines  promulgated  by  Browne, 
and  for  which  he  suffered  so  much,  found  many  friends  and 
advocates  ;  and  such  as  were  ready  to  defend  them  and 
suffer  for  them. 

The  year  1583  is  memorable  in  our  history  for  the 
public  execution  of  two  clergymen  for  their  attachment  to 
these  opinions.  June  4th,  Ellas  Thacker  was  hanged  at  St. 
Edmundsbury  ;  and  two  days  after,  Jo /m  Copping.  They 
were  accused  of  "  spreading  certain  books  seditiously  pen- 
ned by  Robert  Browne  against  the  Book  of  Common 
Prayer  established  by  the  laws  of  this  realm. "t 

These  appear  to  have  been  the  proto-martyrs  of  the  de- 
denomination.  And,  for  what  were  these  worthy  ministers 
hanged  like  public  felons.?  Were  they  charged  with  any 
crime  against  the  state  .''  Were  they  accused  of  disloyalty 
to  their  queen .?  Were  they  suspected  of  heresy  even  in 
their  doctrinal  creed  }    No.     Nothing  of  this  sort  was  laid 

*  Quoted  by  lianbury,  p.  24.  note  a.  t  Neal,  Vol.  I.  p.  389. 


252  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

to  their  charge.  "  They  were  both  sound  in  the  doctrinal 
articles  of  the  church  of  England,  and  were  of  unblemished 
lives."*  But,  they  had  spread  certain  books  penned  by  Rob- 
ert Browne  against  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer  !  And  these 
books  are  pronounced— seditious,  because  "  they  acknow- 
ledged her  maiesty's  supremacy  civilly,  but  not  otherwise." 
Because  they  would  not  acknowledge  the  woman  then  on 
the  throne  of  England  to  be  head  of  the  church  of  England, 
and  possessed,  lawfully,  of  the  right  to  lord  it  over  the  con- 
sciences of  her  subjects,  these  good  men  must  be  dragged 
from  their  families,  shut  up  in  prison,  and  finally  hanged 
like  highwaymen.  But  the  gallows  could  not  drive  them 
from  their  principles.  They  had  found  the  truth  in  God's 
Word,  and  they  would  not  sell  it  even  to  purchase  life. 
They  cheerfully  sealed  their  testimony  with  their  blood. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


THE  MARTYRDOM  OF  HENRY  BARR0WE,J0HN  GREENWOOD, 
AND  JOHN  PENRY. 

I  have  now  to  introduce  to  the  reader  two  learned  and 
excellent  men,  who  held  prominent  places  among  the 
leaders  of  the  rising  sect.  Their  learning  and  piety,  not 
less  than  the  constancy  of  their  sufferings,  entitle  them  to 
honorable  notice.  They  were  not  the  followers  of  Browne, 
though  believers  in  the  same  general  principles  of  church 
polity,  which  they  severally  derived  from  a  common  source. 

Henry  Barrowe  was  a  lawyer  ;  a  man  of  genius  and 
learning  ;  an  acute  controversialist,  of  caustic  wit,  and  un- 

"  Weal. 


BARROWE  AND  GREENWOOD.  253 

flinching  boldness.  The  first  notice  which  we  have  of  this 
remarkable  man — after  whom  our  denomination  were  some- 
times called  Barrowists — is  in  1586,  when  he  and  the  Rev. 
John  Greenwood  were  summoned  before  the  high  commis- 
sioners, charged  with  "  schismalical  and  seditious  opinions  ; 
namely  :  That  our  church  is  no  church,  or  at  least,  no  true 
church  ;  yielding  these  reasons, — That  the  worship  of  the 
English  church  is  flat  idolatry  :  That  we  admit  into  our 
church  persons  unsanctified  :  That  our  preachers  have  no 
lawful  [scriptural]  calling:  That  our  government  [disci- 
pline] is  ungodly:  *  *  That  the  people  of  every  parish 
ought  to  choose  their  bishop ;  and  that  every  elder,  though 
he  be  no  doctor,  nor  pastor,  is  a  bishop  :  *  *  That  the 
child  of  ungodly  parents  ought  not  to  be  baptized,"  etc.* 
Barrowe  refused  the  oath  ex  officio — or  in  other  words 
- — the  oath  by  which  he  would  have  been  made  to  criminate 
himself;  but  promised  to  answer  truly  such  questions  as  he 
answered  at  all.  He  admitted  the  general  correctness  of 
the  above  charges  as  matters  of  fact  ^  but  denied  their  "  se- 
ditious" tendency. 

The  following  statement  made  by  Barrowe  himself,  in 
answer  to  the  archbishop's  articles  of  inquiry,  will  enable 
the  reader  to  understand  the  opinions  of  this  good  man,  up- 
on several  important  points  :  "The  Lord's  prayer,  is  in 
my  opinion,  rather  a  summary  than  an  enjoined  form  ;  and, 
not  finding  it  used  by  the  apostles,  I  think  it  may  not  be 
constantly  used. — In  tl>e  word  of  God,  I  find  no  authority 
given  to  any  man  to  impose  liturgies,  or  forms  of  prayer, 
upon  the  church  ;  and  it  is,  therefore,  high  presumption  to 
impose  them. — In  my  opinion  the  Common  Prayer  is  idola- 

*  Quoted  by  Haribury,  pp.  35,  3G,  from  Sir  George  Pauls,  comp- 
U-oIler  of  archbishop  Whitgift's  household. 

22 


254  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

trous,  superstitious,  and  popish. — As  the  sacraments  of  the 
church  of  England  are  publicly  administered,  they  are  not 
true  sacraments. — As  the  decrees  and  canons  of  the  church 
are  so  numerous,  I  cannot  judge  of  all ;  but  many  of  the 
laws  of  the  church  of  England,  and  the  ecclesiastical  courts 
and  governors,  are  unlawful  and  antichristian. — Such  as 
have  been  baptized  in  the  church  of  England,  are  not  bap- 
tized according  to  the  institution  of  Christ  ;  yet  they  may 
not  need  it  again. — As  it  is  now  formed,  the  church  of  Eng- 
land is  not  the  true  church  of  Christ  ;  yet  there  are  many 
excellent  Christians  in  it. — The  queen  is  supreme  governor 
of  the  whole  land,  and  over  the  church  bodies  and  goods  ; 
but  may  not  make  any  other  laws  for  the  church  of  Christ 
than  he  hath  left  in  his  Word.— I  cannot  see  it  lawful  for 
any  prince  to  alter  the  least  part  of  the  judicial  law  of 
Moses,  without  doing  injury  to  the  moral  law,  and  opposing 
the  will  of  God. — No  private  persons  may  reform  the  State^ 
[the  question  related  to  the  church,]  if  any  prince  neglect 
it,  but  they  ought  to  abstain  from  all  unlawful  things  com- 
manded by  the  prince. — The  government  of  the  church  of 
Christ  belongeth  not  to  the  ungodly,  but  every  particular 
church  ought  to  have  an  eldership^  [Presbytery  is  the 
word  in  the  question.] 

His  examination  resulted,  in  his  committal  to  close  prison  ; 
where,  having  been  detained  for  some  time,  he  was  at  length 
released,  by  giving  bonds  for  his  good  behavior. 

In  July  of  1588,  he  was  again  arrested,  and  sent  to  the 
Fleet ;  where  he  appears  to  have  been  kept  a  close  pris- 
oner for  nearly  five  years  ;  under  circumstances  of  extreme 
cruelty;  exposed  to  cold,  and  nakedness,  and  hunger,  and 
the  noisome  pestilence  of  a  close  and  crowded  prison.  A 
part  of  the  time,  at  least,  he  was  not  permitted  the  use  of 
pen  and  ink,  nor  the  sight  of  his  friends.     He  was  closely 


BARROWE  AND  GREENWOOD.  255 

watched,  and  bis  person  and  his  prison  repeatedly  searched, 
to  prevent  him  from  employing  his  able  and  caustic  pen  in 
refutation  of  his  adversaries,  and  in  defence  of  his  own 
principles. 

But,  notwithstanding  all  these  precautions  to  prevent  his 
labors,  if  not  to  break  down  his  spirit  and  destroy  his  life, — 
he  contrived  by  stealth  to  use  his  pen.  It  was  while  thus 
confined  and  watched,  that  he  wrote  his  remarkable  work, 
entitled  "  A  Brief  Discovery  of  the  False  Church  ;  Ezek. 
16 :  44.  As  the  Mother,  such  the  Daughter  is.  By  the 
Lord's  most  unworthy  servant  and  witness,  in  bonds,  Henry 
Barrowe,"  4to.  pp.263.*  In  the  Preface  he  tells  the  reader, 
that  he  could  not  "  keep  one  sheet  by  him,  while  he  was 
writing  another."  In  this  work  he  takes  the  Word  of  God 
for  his  "warrant"  and  guide.  He  compares  the  church 
of  England  established  by  law,  and  red  with  the  blood  of 
saints,  to  the  church  of  antichrist.  "  Let  us  "  he  says, 
"for  the  appeasing  and  assurance  of  our  consciences,  give 
heed  to  the  Word  of  God,  and  by  that  golden  reed  measure 
our  temple,  our  altar,  and  our  worshippers;  even  by  these 
rules  whereby  the  apostles,  those  excellent,  perfect  work- 
men, planted  and  built  the  first  churches. "f     *  *  * 

He  asserts  the  right  of  private  judgment  in  every  mem- 
ber of  a  church  : — He  declares  that  "  every  particular 
member  hath  power,  yea,  and  ought  to  examine  the  man- 
ner of  administering  the  sacraments;  as  also,  the  estate, 
disorder,  or  transgressions  of  the  whole  church  :"  *  *  Re- 
specting the  officers  of  the  church  he  says  :  "  The  ministry 
appointed  unto  the  government  and  service  of  the  church  of 
Christ,  we  find  to  be  of  two  sorts  ;  Elders,  and  Deacons. " 
The  Book   of  Common  Prayer  he  denounces  in  no  mea- 


Hanbury,  p.  39.  t  ibid.  p.  40. 


256  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

sured  terms,  and  in  no  stinted  language. — He  says:  '■'^it  is 
evident  to  be  [that  it  is]  abstracted  out  of  the  pope's 
blasphemous  Mass  Book."  A  declaration  that  cannot  be 
gainsayed. 

In  passing  he  gives  Presbyterianism  a  severe  stroke.  He 
seems  to  have  cherished  as  little  favor  for  "their  set  con- 
tinued synods;  their  select  classis  of  ministers;  their  set- 
tled supreme  council,"  or  geneml  assembly  ;  as  for  the 
"ruinous  and  tyrannous  kingdom"  of  the  "pontifical 
priests  :"  "  These  Reformists  "[the  Presbyterians]  he  says, 
— "  howsoever,  for  fashion's  sake,  they  give  the  People 
a  little  liberty,  to  sweeten  their  mouths,  and  make  them  be- 
lieve that  they  should  choose  their  own  ministers  ;  yet  even 
in  this  pretended  choice,  do  they  cozen  and  beguile  them 
also  ;  leaving  them  nothing  but  the  smoky,  windy,  title  of 
election  only  ; — enjoining  them  to  choose  some  University 
clerk ;  one  of  these  college-birds  of  their  own  brood  ;  or 
else,  comes  a  synod  in  the  neck  of  them,  and  annihilates 
the  election,  whatsoever  it  be  I  They  have  also,  a  trick  to 
stop  it,  before  it  come  so  far  ;  namely,  in  the  Ordination  ; 
which  must,  forsooth,  needs  be  done  by  other  priests  ;— 
for  the  church  that  chooseth  him,  hath  no  power  to  ordain 
him  !  And  this  makes  the  mother-church  of  Geneva,  and 
the  Dutch  classis, — I  dare  not  say  the  secret  classis  in  Eng- 
land,— to  make  ministers  for  us  in  England."* 

Another  production  of  Barrowe's  pen  during  his  impris- 
onment, was,  a  letter  to  an  "  honorable  lady  and  countess, 
of  his  kindred,"  describing  his  sufferings,  and  urging  her 
to  make  efforts  for  his  release.  He  tells  her  ladyship,  that, 
"  for  books,  written  more  than  three  years  since,  after  near 
six  year's  imprisonment,"  he  and  four  other  brethren  had 

*  Ut  sup.  pp.  46,  47. 


BARROWE  AND  GREENWOOD.  257 

been  indicted,  arraigned,  condemned,  and  adjudged  to  suf- 
fer death  as  felons."  He  then  describes  what  he  and  his 
companions  had  been  made  to  suffer  since  their  condemna- 
tion ;  doubtless  for  the  purpose  of  shaking  their  firmness  in 
the  profession  of  the  truth  :  "  Upon  the  24th  [March  1592 
— 3]  early  in  the  morning,  was  preparation  made  for  our 
execution  :  We,  brought  out  of  the  limbo  [dungeon,]  our 
irons  smitten  off,  and  we  ready  to  be  bound  to  the  cart, 
when  her  majesty's  most  gracious  pardon  came  for  our 
reprieve." 

After  this  feint,  the  bishops  sent  their  emissaries  to  endea- 
vor to  shake  the  constancy  of  these  faithful  confessors.  One 
of  their  number  seems  to  have  yielded  ;  the  other  four  re- 
niained  firm.  This  letter  contains  the  description  of  another 
most  affecting  scene,  through  which  these  good  men  were 
made  to  pass  on  their  way  to  death  :  "  Upon  the  last  day  of 
the  third  month  [March],  my  brother  Greenwood  and  I  were 
very  early  and  secretly  conveyed  to  the  place  of  execution  ; 
where,  being  tied  by  the  necks  to  the  tree,  we  were  per- 
mitted to  speak  a  few  words  *  *  Thus,  craving  pardon  of 
all  men  whom  we  had  any  way  offended,  and  freely  for- 
giving the  whole  world,  we  used  prayer  for  her  majesty, 
the  magistrates,  people,  and  even  for  our  adversaries.  And 
having,  both  of  us,  almost  finished  our  last  words,  behold, 
one  was  even  at  that  instant  come  with  a  reprieve  for  our 
lives  from  her  majesty ;  which  was  not  only  thankfully  re- 
ceived of  us,  but  with  exceeding  rejoicing  and  applause  of 
all  the  people,  both  at  the  place  of  execution,  and  in  the 
ways,  streets,  and  houses,  as  we  returned  !"* 

This  affecting  letter  was  probably  the  last  effort  of  Bar- 
rowe's  pen.     It  was  addressed  to  a  relative  who  seems  to 

*  Quoted  by  Hanbury,  pp.  48,  49. 

22* 


258  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

have  had  access  to  the  queen's  person,  soliciting  this  lady  to 
lay  his  case  before  her  majesty.  Whether  this  was  done 
we  know  not.  But  this  is  on  record,  that  the  tyrannical 
and  nnerciless  archbishop  Whitgift  had  intercepted  a  previ- 
ous petition  from  this  prisoner,  addressed  to  the  queen  her- 
self, and  had  exerted  himself  to  keep  the  facts  of  Barrowe's 
case  from  the  knowledge  of  her  majesty.*  No  wonder 
that  this  persecuted  and  abused  prisoner  was  provoked  to 
speak  blunt  and  harsh  truth  of  this  haughty,  passionate, 
ambitious,  tyrannical,  blood-thirsty  prelate. t 

On  the  6th  day  of  May,  1693,  this  fearless  champion  of 
scriptural  truth,  with  his  Christian  brother  Greenwood,  was 
carried,  for  the  third  time  to  the  place  of  execution,  Ty- 
burn ;  and  there  hanged,  for  the  crime  of  non-conformity 
to  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  English  church  !  !  At 
their  execution  they  displayed  the  same  unshaken  firmness 
which  they  had  ever  exhibited  ;  and  manifested  the  utmost 
loyalty  towards  the  queen  ;  praying  earnestly  for  her  long 
and  prosperous  reign. 

Dr.  Raynolds  attended  them  in  their  last  moments,  of 
whom  the  queen  sometime  after  inquired  :  "  What  he  then 
thought  of  those  two  men,  Henry  Barrowe  and  John  Green- 

*  Neal,  Vol.  1.  p.  527. 

t  On  one  of  his  examinations  before  the  high  commissioners,  if 
being  noticed  that  Barrowe  did  not  pay  the  same  respect  to  the 
archbishop  and  the  bishop  of  London,  as  he  did  to  the  temporal 
lords,  the  lord  chancellor  Hatton,  asked  if  be  did  not  know  these 
two  men  ?  pointing  to  the  prelates  :  Barrowe  replied,  that  he  had 
cause  to  know  them,  but  did  not  acknowledge  them  lord  bishops. 
Being  asked  what  he  would  call  the  archbishop  ;  he  replied  :  "  He 
is  a  monster  !  a  miserable  compound  ;  I  know  not  what  to  make  of 
him,.  He  is  neither  ecclesiastical  nor  civil ;  even  that  second  beast 
spoken  of  in  the  Revelation,  [Chap.  xiii."J — Hanbury^p.  37;  Neal. 
Vol.  I.  pp.  524,  525. 


JOHN  GREENWOOD.  259 

wood  ?  He  answered  her  majesty,  that  it  could  not  avail 
anything  to  show  his  judgment  concerning  them,  seeing 
they  were  put  to  death.  And  being  loath  to  speak  his  mind 
further,  her  majesty  charged  him  upon  his  allegiance  to 
speak;  whereupon  he  answered,  That  he  2cas  persuaded, 
if  they  had  lived,  they  would  have  been  two  as  worthy  in- 
struments for  the  church  of  God,  as  have  been  raised  up  in 
this  age.  Her  majesty  sighed,  and  said  no  more  :  but  after 
that,  riding  to  a  park,  near  the  place  where  they  suffered 
death,  called  again  to  mind  their  suflering  of  death,  and  de- 
manded of  the  earl  of  Cumberland,  who  was  present 
when  they  suffered,  what  end  they  made  ?  He  answered, 
'  A  very  godly  end ;  and  prayed  for  your  majesty,  the 
state,'  etc."* 

John  Greenwood,  Barrowe's  companion  in  tribulation, 
was  a  university  scholar,  and  received  his  degree  of  B.  A. 
in  1580.  "  He  was  chaplain  to  lord  Rich  ;  was  married, 
and  had  '  a  young  son.'  "  He  was  first  imprisoned  in  No- 
vember, 1586,  together  with  his  friend  and  fellow  collegian 
and  fellow  laborer  Barrowe.t 

He  appears  to  have  been  arrested  at  midnight,  and  drag- 


*  Quoted  by  Hanbury,  pp  61 ,  02,  from  the  preface  of  one  of  Bar- 
rowe's  works  re-printed  after  his  death;  Ncal,  Vol.  I.  pp.  .524 — 
527. — Neal  puts  the  execution  one  month  earlier — (6lh  April  )  He 
does  not  seem  to  have  been  acquainted  with  Barrowe's  letter  to  the 
countess  ;  and  mentions  their  being  brought  out  for  execution  but 
twice,  instead  oi  three  times. 

t  Neal,  I.  p.  524,  says  that  "  Barrowe  was  apprehended  at  the 
Clink  Prison,  in  Southwack,  where  he  went  to  visit  his  brother 
Greenwood."  This  would  suggest,  that  they  were  not  imprisoned 
at  the  same  time:  but  their  examinations  were  at  the  same  time, 
and  in  November  of  the  same  year.  —  See  back,  p.  253,  so  that 
there  could  have  been  but  little  if  any  difference  between  the  lime 
at  which  the  two  friends  were  imprisoned. 


260  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ged  from  his  bed  to  prison.  He  suffered  the  same  rigorous 
treatment  of  which  Barrowe  complained,  and  for  the  same 
length  of  time — "  well  near  six  years."  He  was  examined 
at  or  near  the  same  time  with  Barrowe,  and  upon  the  same 
general  interrogatories;  and  witnessed  the  same  bold  and 
Christian  confession  before  his  persecutors.  His  sentiments 
seem  to  have  been  very  similar  to  those  of  his  companion  in 
tribulation  for  the  Word's  sake.  He  was  a  man  of  learning, 
an  able  controversialist,  and  an  unflinching  advocate  for  Con- 
gregational principles  and  doctrines.  He  was  associated 
with  his  brother  Barrowe  in  several  controversial  works. 
The  first  of  his  works,  written  about  the  year  1589 — 90,  is 
an  "Answer  to  George  Giffard's  pretended  Defence  of 
Read  Prayers  and  Devised  Liturgies;  with  the  ungodly 
Cavils  and  wicked  Slanders  comprised  in  the  first  part  of 
his  Book,  intituled,  A  short  Treatise  against  the  Donatists 
of  England."  Greenwood  styles  himself — "  Christ's  poor 
afflicted  Prisoner  in  the  Fleet,  at  London,  for  the  Truth  of 
the  Gospel."  In  this  treatise  he  distinctly  disclaims  any 
discipleship  with  Browne.  "  What  opinion  the  '  Brownists' 
hold  of  the  Church  of  England,  their  worship,  people,  min- 
istry, government, — we,"  says  Greenwood,  "  neither  know 
nor  regard  :  neiliier  is  there  any  cause  why  we  should  be 
charged  or  condemned  for  their  errors  and  faults."  *  He 
speaks  in  terms  of  severity  against  "  the  malignant  church" 
of  England.  He  calls  upon  God's  people  to  come  out  of  her, 
lest  they  communicate  in  her  sins,  and  receive  of  her 
plagues.  "  Let  her  shipmasters,  then,  her  mariners,  mer- 
chantmen, enchanters,  and  false  prophets,  utter  and  retail 
her  wares,  deck  and  adorn  her  with  the  scarlet,  purple,  gold, 
silver,  jewels,  and  ornaments  of  the  true  Tabernacle  :  let 
them,  in  her,  offer  up  their  sacrifices,  their  beasts,  sheep, 

*  Hanbury,  Chap.  4.  p.  C6. 


JOHN  GREENWOOD.  261 

meal,  wine,  oil ;  their  odours,  ointments,  and  frankincense  : 
let  them  daub  and  undershore  her  ;  build  and  reform  her ; 
until  the  storm  of  the  Lord^s  wrath  break  forth  ;"  *  *  "But 
let  the  wise,  that  are  warned  and  see  the  evil,  fear  and  de- 
part from  the  same  ;  so  shall  they  preserve  their  own  souls 
as  a  prey :  and  the  Lord  shall  bring  them  amongst  his  re- 
deemed, to  Zion,  'with  praise,'  and  '  everlasting  joy'  shall 
be  upon  their  heads ;  '  ihey  shall  obtain  joy  and  gladness, 
and  sorrow  and  mourning  shall  flee  away."  * 

The  next  year  he  produced  another  work — against  "  Mr. 
Gifiard's  supposed  consimilitude  betwixt  the  Donatists  and 
us  ;  wherein  it  is  showed  how  his  Arguments  have  been 
and  may  be,  by  the  Papists,  more  justly  retorted  against 
himself,  and  the  present  estate  of  their  church.  By  Jo. 
Greenwood,  1591."  Giffard  appears  to  have  been  a  con- 
forming Puritan.  He  fell  into  rough  hands  when  he  at- 
tacked Barrowe  and  Greenwood  ;  and  had  occasion  to  re- 
member the  wise  man's  saying,  before  he  was  through  with 
the  controversy  :  "  He  that  passeth  by  and  meddleth  with 
strife  belonging  not  to  him,  is  like  one  that  takelh  a  dog  by 
the  ears."  Greenwood  says:  "You  term  us  Brownists 
and  Donatists  ;  whereas  I  never  conversed  ivith  the  men  nor 
their  writings  f  I  detest  Donatus'  heresies.  And  if  they 
had  been  instruments  to  teach  us  any  truth,  we  were  not 
therefore  to  be  named  with  their  names;  we  were  baptized 
into  ChrisVs.  Browne  is  a  member  oi  your  church  ;  your 
brother,  and  all  the  Brownists  do  frequent  your  assemblies." 

Greenwood's  object  seems  to  have  been,  to  throw  off  from 
himself  and  his  friends  the  obloquy  of  a  bad  name.  He 
tacitly  admits  that  he  held  some  sentiments  in  common  with 
Donatus  and  Browne  ; — indeed,  he  could  not,  in  truth,  have 


lb.  pp.  66,  67. 


262  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

denied  this;  but  he  insists  that  his  sentiments  were  derived 
not  from  either  of  these  men,  but  from  the  Word  of  God. 

In  connection  with  the  above  treatises  of  Greenwood 
should  be  mentioned  "  A  Plain  Refutation  of  Mr.  Giffard's 
Book,  intituled  'A  short  Treatise  'gainst  the  Donatists  of 
England,"  by  Henry  Barrowe.  And,  a  "  Brief  Sum  of  the 
Causes  of  our  Separation,  etc."  And  two  other  works  up- 
on the  same  controversy.  These  several  works  seem  to 
have  been  written,  if  not  jointly  by  the  two  prisoners  and 
friends,  yet  by  mutual  agreement ;  and  by  mutual  assist- 
ance;  and  present  the  views  of  both  of  these  witnesses  to 
the  truth  ;  the  sincerity  of  whose  testimony  was  finally 
sealed  with  their  blood,  as  already  related  ;  for,  as  in  senti- 
ment they  were  united,  in  suffering  and  death  they  were  not 
divided. 

In  respect  to  what  Greenwood  says  of  the  Brownists  at- 
tending the  assemblies  of  the  national  church ;  he  must,  1 
think,  refer  to  Browne's  personal  and  immediate  friends 
and  followers;  who  might  be  so  far  influenced  by  his  ex- 
ample, as  to  yield  an  outward  conformity  to  the  Church  of 
England  by  attending  upon  her  public  worship,  as  did  very 
many  of  the  Puritans,  who  were  inclined  to  Presbyterianism. 
Many  devout  men  hesitated  to  separate  totally,  even  from 
a  very  corrupt  church,  so  long  as  the  doctrinal  articles  of 
that  church  were  sound  and  scriptural.  But,  Barrowe,  and 
Greenwood,  and  many  others,  were,  for  an  entire  separa- 
tion from  the  English  hierarchy  ;  on  the  ground,  that  it  was 
an  essentially  corrupt  and  antichristian  establishment  : — 
That  the  Church  of  England  was  no  better  than  a  daughter 
of  the  "  Mother  of  Harlots."  They  argued  their  right  to 
separate  from  the  English  church  on  the  same  general  prin- 
ciples which  the  Reformers  urged  to  justify  their  separation 
from  the  Romish  church.     Greenwood  argues  most  conclu- 


THE  SEPARATISTS.  263 

sively  upon  this  point.  To  Giffard's  objection  against  a 
separation,  That  the  Church  of  England  held  sound  doc- 
trinal sentiments,  and  that  she  was  "  esteenned  and  reve- 
renced as  a  sister"  by  the  foreign  reformed  churches; 
Greenwood  thus  replies:  "Now  hold  to  your  argument, 
and  see  what  will  follow  :  The  Church  of  Rome  hath  the 
same  Confession  of  Faith,  which  you  call  your  Apostolic 
Creed,  that  you  have  ;  yea,  the  Lord's  Prayer,  as  you  call  it ; 
*  Athanasius'  Creed,  etc.  ;  therefore,  they  and  you  agreeing 
in  this  harmony  of  confession,  are  one  body,  one  church  ! 
Again  ;  these  churches,  you  say,  hold  you  '  the  church  of 
God  ;'  and  you  hold  the  Church  of  Rome  to  be  the  church  of 
God,  therefore  you  are  one  body  all ;  and  then  you  and  all 
the  churches  [are]  schismatics  from  your  mother  church." 

Such  an  argument  must  have  choked  poor  Giffard.  It 
was  ad  rem,  if  not  ad  hominem  :  it  was  an  effectual  turning 
of  the  enemy's  guns  upon  himself. 

The  Separatists. 

In  regard  to  the  name  of  the  rising  sect ; — a  subject  on 
which  both  of  the  writers  under  review,  and  others  of  a  later 
date  displayed  considerable  sensitiveness; — it  should  be  re- 
marked. That  a  name  is  of  more  importance  than,  at  first 
thought,  might  be  supposed.  Browne's  name  had  become 
notorious  throughout  the  kingdom,  and  even  on  the  Conti- 
nent, as  a  violent,  immoral  apostate ;  and  the  community 
generally,  without  discriminating  between  the  speculative 
opinions  and  the  moral  conduct  of  the  man,  would  be  ready 
to  judge  all  who  bore  his  name,  as  followers,  by  the  known 
character  of  the  man  himself.  For  this  reason,  the  Separa- 
tists were  anxious  to  throw  off  the  obloquy  of  Browne's  bad 
name.  And,  further  :  the  truth  seems  to  have  been,  that 
Browne  was  by  no  means  the  father  of  the  rising  sect.     In- 


264  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

deed,  they  called  no  man  nnaster  :  they  took  the  Word  of 
God  for  their  only  infallible  guide,  Browne  was  merely 
one  of  thousands  in  different  parts  of  England  who  had  em- 
braced subslanlialiy  the  same  views  of  church  polity.  The 
peculiarities  of  the  man,  and  perhaps  the  policy  of  some  of 
Elizabeth's  ministers  of  state,  caused  Browne  to  be  better 
known,  for  a  season,  than  any  other  of  the  same  way  of 
thinking.*  But,  as  we  have  seen,  the  seed  of  Congrega- 
tionalism had  long  been  vegetating  in  the  nation  ;  and  other 
and  better  men  than  Browne  had  learned  the  truth  by  an 
independent  investigation  of  the  Scriptures.  Two  of  the 
leading  minds  concerned  in  this  controversy  we  have  already 
noticed  ;  others  will  be  noticed  in  the  sequel.  To  distin- 
guish the  rising  sect  from  the  Puritans  who  conformed  to 
the  church,  and  were  called  the  "  Conformable  Puritans  ;" 
and  the  Brownists,  whose  leader  had  outwardly  apostatized, 
and  whose  immediate  followers  were,  to  some  extent,  in- 
fluenced by  his  example — The  men  whose  sentiments  are 
exhibited  in  the  writings  of  Barrowe  and  Greenwood,  and 
their  associates — were  styled  the  Separation  or  the 
Separatists  ;  because  they  utterly  separated  themselves 
from  the  fellowship  of  the  Church  of  England  as  an  anti- 
christian  Establishment,  I  note  this  here,  because  it  was 
about  the  time  of  which  I  am  now  treating  (1592 — 3)  that 
this  name  was  given  to  the  advocates  of  Congregationalism  : 
and  by  this  name  they  will  be  called  for  some  tim.e  forward 
in  this  history, 

*  Cecil,  lord  Burleigh,  bore  no  great  friendship  towards  the  ty- 
rannical power  of  the  bishops;  and,  to  thwart  and  embarrass  them, 
he  is  believed  to  have  secretly  countenanced  his  kinsman  Browne  ; 
and  to  have  protected  him,  covertly,  from  the  fury  of  the  church. 
■ —  See  Hanbury,  Chap.  II  passim:  Hume's  Elizab.  Vol.  IIL 
Chap.  40.  pp.  57,  56. 


PENRY.  265 

Martyrdom  of  Rev.  John  Penry. 

John  Penry,  or  Ap  Henry,  was  another  martyr  to  the 
principles  of  Congregational  Dissent.  The  story  of  his  per- 
secution and  death,  is,  perhaps,  the  most  aflfectingly  inter- 
esting one  in  the  annals  of  our  history.  Even  Hume  sets 
it  down  as  a  case  of  unparalleled  atrocity.* 

Penry  was  born  in  Wales,  at  Brecknock  ;  he  entered  at 
Cambridge,  but  graduated  at  Oxford,  from  whence  he  re- 
ceived his  degree  of  M.  A.  in  1586:  and  immediately  en- 
tered the  gospel  ministry.  Strype  calls  him,  "  a  pious  and 
learned  man,  well  disposed  to  religion."  "  He  preached  in 
both  universities  with  applause  ;  and  afterwards,  travelling 
into  Wales,  was  the  first  that  preached  the  gospel  publicly 
to  the  Welch."  t 

About  the  year  1588  he  published  two  works,  setting  forth 
the  necessity  of  a  reformation  of  abuses  in  Wales;  and 
urging  the  importance  of  having  the  gospel  preached  more 
faithfully  in  that  country.  On  the  publication  of  certain 
satirical  pamphlets  against  the  bishops,  in  1590,  (I  refer  to 
the  Mar-Prelate  pamphlets,)  Penry,  for  some  reason,  was 
suspected  to  be  their  author,  though  wrongfully  ;  J  and 
warrants  were  immediately  issued  for  his  apprehension. 
To  avoid  them— for  a  man's  innocency  was  no  protection 
from  the  High-Commission  Inquisition  —  he  fled  into  Scot- 
land ;  where  he  remained  till  1593.  After  which,  ventur- 
ing into  England,  he  was  immediately  arrested  as  an  enemy 
to  the  state — a  common  charge  against  those  who  would  not 

*  Elizab.  App  3.  pp.  253,  254.  t  Neal,  I.  Chap.  8.  p.  528. 

t  Hume,  Elizab.  App.  3.  p.  254,  unhesitatingly  ascribes  Martin 
Mar-Prelate  and  other  works  of  the  same  description  to  Fenry, 
but  Martin  himself  clears  Penry  fully  i'rorn  the  charge  ;  and  Penrj 
himself  denied  the  authorship.  —  See  Hanbury,  p.  HO,  note  a.  and 
p.  79,  note/. 

23 


266  HISTOHY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

bow  the  knee  to  the  lord  bishops  of  the  land.  On  his  per- 
son, or  in  his  possession,  were  found  certain  manuscript 
notes  touching  ecclesiastical  matters,  made  by  Penry  dur- 
ing his  residence  in  Scotland,  drawn  up  in  the  form  of  an 
address  to  her  Majesty,  complaining  of  the  rigorous  and 
anti-christian  character  of  her  government,  and  pointing  out 
various  ecclesiastical  abuses  which  called  loudly  for  refor- 
mation. On  these  papers,  though  never  published — and 
though  it  could  not  be  proved  that  their  author  ever  in- 
tended to  publish  them — Penry  was  tried  and  condemned. 
His  case  is  one  of  so  much  interest,  as  developing  the 
spirit  of  the  limes,  and  the  merciless  rigor  with  which  our 
religious  ancestors  were  persecuted,  that  I  shall  feel  war- 
ranted in  quoting  somewhat  freely  from  the  writings  of  this 
interesting  young  man,  from  which  the  reader  may  gather 
many  particulars  touching  the  history,  character,  and  suf- 
ferings of  the  martyr.  And  first,  1  will  quote  from  a  '"^Pro- 
testation before  his  Death,"  addressed  by  the  victim  to  the 
lord  treasurer. 

Penry'^s  Protestation. 

"  I  am  a  poor  young  man,  born  and  bred  in  the  mountains 
of  Wales.  1  am  the  first,  since  the  last  springing  of  the 
Gospel  in  this  latter  age,  that  publicly  labored  to  have  the 
blessed  seed  thereof  sown  in  those  barren  mountains.  I 
have  often  rejoiced  before  my  God,  as  he  knoweth,  that  1 
had  the  favour  to  be  born  and  live  under  her  Majesty,  for 
the  promoting  this  work.  .  .  And  being  now  to  end  my  days, 
before  I  am  come  to  the  one  half  of  my  years,  in  the  likely 
course  of  nature,  I  leave  the  success  of  my  labours  unto 
such  of  my  countrymen  as  the  Lord  is  to  raise  after  me,  for 
the  accomplishing  of  that  work  which,  in  the  calling  of  my 
country  unto  the  knowledge  of  Christ's  blessed  Gospel,  I  be* 


PENRY.  267 

gan.  .  .  An  enemy  unto  any  good  order  and  policy,  either 
in  Church  or  Commonwealth,  was  I  never.  All  good 
learning  and  knowledge  of  the  arts  and  tongues  I  laboured 
to  attain  unto,  and  to  promote  unto  the  uttermost  of  my 
power.  Whatsoever  I  wrote  in  Religion,  the  same  I  did 
simply,  for  no  other  end  than  for  the  bringing  of  God*s 
Truth  to  light.  I  never  did  any  thing  in  this  Cause  (Lord, 
thou  art  witness  !)  for  contention,  vain  glory,  or  to  draw 
disciples  after  me  ;  or  to  be  accounted  singular.  Whatso- 
ever I  wrote  or  held  beside  the  warrant  of  the  written  Word, 
I  have  always  warned  all  men  to  leave.  And  wherein  I  saw 
that  I  had  erred  myself,  I  have,  as  all  this  Land  doth  now  know, 
confessed  my  ignorance,  and  framed  my  judgment  and  prac- 
tice according  to  the  truth  of  the  Word.  .  .  Far  be  it,  that 
either  the  saving  of  an  earthly  life  ;  the  regard  which  in 
nature  I  ought  to  have  to  the  desolate  outward  state  of  a 
poor  friendless  widow,  and  four  poor  fatherless  infants, 
whereof  the  eldest  is  not  above  four  years  old,  which  I  am 
to  leave  behind  me  ;  or  any  other  outward  thing,  should  en- 
force me,  by  the  denial  of  God's  Truth,  contrary  to  my  con- 
science, to  leese  [sic]  my  own  soul.  The  Lord,  I  trust,  will 
never  give  me  over  unto  this  sin.  Great  things  in  this  life 
I  never  sought  for,  not  so  much  as  in  thought.  A  mean 
and  base  outward  state,  according  to  my  mean  condition, 
I  was  content  with.  Sufficiency  I  have  had,  with  great  out- 
ward troubles  ;  but  most  contented  I  was  with  my  lot ;  and 
content  I  am,  and  shall  be,  with  my  undeserved  and  un- 
timely death  :  beseeching  the  Lord,  that  it  be  not  laid  to 
the  charge  of  any  creature  in  this  land.  For  I  do,  from  my 
heart,  forgive  all  those  that  seek  my  life,  as  I  desire  to  be 
forgiven  in  the  day  of  strict  account;  praying  for  them  as 
for  my  own  soul,  that  although  upon  earth  we  cannot  ac- 
cord, we  may  yet  meet  in  heaven  unto  our  eternal  comfort 


268  HISTOKY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISBI. 

and  unity ;  where  all  controversies  shall  be  at  an  end.  .  . 
Many  such  subjects  I  wish  unto  my  Prince  ;  though  no 
such  reward  unto  anyof  thenn.  .  .  Subscribed  with  the  heart 
and  the  hand,  which  never  devised  or  wrote  any  thing  to 
the  discredit  or  defamation  of  my  Sovereign,  Queen  Eliza- 
beth :  I  take  it  on  my  death,  as  I  hope  to  have  a  life  after 
this.  —  By  me  John  Penry." 

His  sentiments,  which  were  denounced  as  so  abhorrent 
to  the  principles  of  good  government,  and  for  which  he  was 
hunted  down,  and  butchered  by  the  bishops'  dogs  ;  are 
briefly  exhibited  in  one  of  his  treatises  on  Reformation  ; 
published  some  time  before  his  apprehension. — "  I  am  ac- 
counted," he  says,  "  an  enemy  unto  our  Slaie^  for  no  other 
suspicion  and  colour,  but  only  because  1  have,  by  public 
writing,  laboured  to  defend  and  induce  in  our  Church,  that 
uniform  order  of  church-regiment,  which  our  Saviour,  Christ, 
hath  ordained  in  his  Word,  to  continue  perpetually  therein  ; 
and  also,  have  endeavoured  to  seek  the  utter  ruin  and  over- 
throw of  that  wicked  hierarchy  of  Lord  Bishops,  togelher 
with  whatsoever  corruption  dependeth  thereupon.  Now, 
that  I  cannot  be  charged  of  enmity  to  our  State  for  any 
other  cause  than  this  which  I  have  expressed,  I  make  it  clear 
in  that  my  bringing  up,  having  been  all  the  days  of  my  life 
at  my  studies,  I  never  as  yet  dealt  in  any  cause,  more  or 
less,  that  any  ways  concerneth  the  civil  state  and  govern- 
ment. .  .  And  therefore  whatsoever  enemies  the  Lord  hath 
raised  up  against  me — a  contemptible  worm — for  the  main- 
tenance of  his  truth,  be  they  noble  or  unnoble,  councillors 
or  inferior  men,  I  am  so  far  from  fearing  their  power,  that 
the  more  I  see  them  rage,  the  greater  strength  I  see  reached 
unto  me  by  the  Lord's  free  mercies,  to  stand  to  the  Truth 
which  they  rave  against."  .  .  "  Where  I  say,  that  professors 
should  labor  strongly  to  have  our  hierarchy  and  contempti- 


PENRY. 


269 


ble  idols  rooted  out  of  our  Church,  my  meaning  is,  not  that 
any  private  strength  should  so  much  as  lift  up  a  hand, 
much  less  use  any  violence  against  these  caterpillars  ;  but 
I  mean,  that  we  should  more  vehemently  labour  w^ith  the 
Lord  by  prayers,  and  by  reforming  ourselves  and  our  fami- 
lies, and  deal  earnestly  with  her  Majesty  and  their  Honors 
that  our  cause  may  be  equally  heard."  .  . 

Though  I  have  already  quoted  somewhat  freely  from  the 
writings  of  this  estimable  man,  I  cannot  persuade  myself 
to  withhold  his  parting  address — "  To  the  distressed^  faith- 
ful Congregation  of  Christ  in  London^  and  all  the  meni' 
hers  thereof  whether  in  bonds  or  at  liberty, —  These  he  de- 
livered :" 

"  My  beloved  Brethren,  Mr.  F.  Johnson,  Mr.  D.  S.,  etc., 
with  the  rest  of  you,  both  men  and  women  ;  as  if  I  particu- 
larly named  you  all,  which  stand  Members  of  this  poor  af- 
flicted Congregation,  whether  at  liberty,  or  in  bonds  ;  Jesus 
Christ,  that  great  King  and  Prince  of  the  kings  of  the  earth, 
bless  you,  comfort  you  with  His  invincible  Spirit,  that  you 
may  be  able  to  bear  and  overcome  these  great  Trials  which 
you  are  yet,  and  I  with  you,  if  I  live, — to  undergo  for  his 
Name's  sake  in  this  Testimony. 

"  Beloved,— Let  us  think  our  lot  and  portion  more  than 
blessed,  that  now  are  vouchsafed  the  favor  not  only  to  know 
and  profess,  but  also  to  suffer  for  the  sincerity  of  the  Gos- 
pel ;  and  let  us  remember,  that  great  is  our  reward  in 
heaven,  if  we  endure  unto  the  end. 

"  1  testify  unto  you  for  mine  own  part,  as  1  shall  answer 
before  Jesus  Christ  and  his  elect  angels,  that  I  never  saw 
any  truth  more  clear  and  undoubted  than  this  witness 
wherein  we  stand,  1.  Against  false  Offices  ;  2.  the  Callings ; 
3.  the  Works  ;  4.  the  Maintenance  left  and  retained,  in  this 
Land,  by  and  from  Popery ;  5.  against  the  Obedience 
23* 


270  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

which  spiritually,  either  in  soul  or  in  body,  is  yielded  ;  and, 
the  Communion  that  is  had,  with  these  inventions  of  dark- 
ness ;  6.  the  Mingling  of  all  sorts,  in  these  Assemblies  ; 
7.  the  Worship  done,  but  scant,  in  one  of  the  three  parts  of 
the  Commission  given  by  our  Saviour  ;  scant  done,  I  say, 
in  one  of  the  three  parts  of  the  Commission,  by  the  best 
Teachers  of  this  Land.  And  I  thank  my  God,  I  am  not 
only  ready  to  be  bound  and  banished,  but  even  to  die  in  this 
Cause,  by  His  strength  ;  yea,  my  Brethren,  I  greatly  long, 
in  regard  of  myself,  to  be  dissolved,  and  to  live  in  the  bles- 
sed Kingdom  of  Heaven,  with  Jesus  Christ  and  his  angels ; 
with  Adam,  Enoch,  Noah,  Abraham,  Moses,  Job,  David, 
Jeremy,  Daniel,  Paul  the  great  apostle  of  the  Gentiles,  and 
the  rest  of  the  holy  Saints,  both  men  and  women  :  with  the 
glorious  kings,  prophets,  and  martyrs,  and  witnesses  of 
Jesus  Christ,  that  have  been  from  tlie  beginning  of  the 
world  ;  particularly  with  my  two  dear  Brethren,  Mr.  Henry 
Barrowe,  and  Mr.  John  Greenwood,  which  have,  last  of  all, 
yielded  their  blood  for  this  precious  '  Testimony  :'  confes- 
sing unto  you,  my  Brethren  and  Sisters,  that  if  I  might  live 
upon  the  earth  the  days  of  Methuselah  twice  told,  and  that 
in  no  less  comfort  than  Peter,  James,  and  John,  were  in  the 
mount ;  and,  after  this  life,  might  be  sure  of  the  Kingdom 
of  Heaven  ;'  that  yet,  to  gain  all  this,  I  durst  not  go  from 
the  former  '  Testimony.' 

"  Wherefore,  my  Brethren,  I  beseech  you  be  of  like  mind 
herein  with  me.  I  doubt  not  but  you  have  the  same  '  pre- 
cious faith'  with  me  ;  and  are  partakers  also  of  far  more 
glorious  comfort  than  my  barren  and  sinful  soul  can  be. 
Strive  for  me,  and  with  me,  that  the  Lord  our  God  may 
noake  me,  and  us  all,  able  to  end  our  course  with  joy  and 
patience.  Strive  also,  that  He  may  stay  his  blessed  hand, 
if  it  be  his  good  pleasure,  and  not  make  any  further  breach 


PENRY.  271 

in  His  church,  by  the  taking  away  of  any  more  of  us  as 
yet,  to  the  discouraging  of  the  weak,  and  the  lifting  up  of 
the  horn  of  our  adversaries. 

"  1  would  indeed,  if  it  be  His  good  pleasure,  live  yet  with 
you,  to  help  you  to  bear  that  grievous  and  hard  yoke  which 
yet  ye  are  like  to  sustain,  either  here,  or  in  a  strange  land. 

"  And,  my  good  Brethren,  seeing  banishment,  with  loss 
of  goods,  is  likely  to  betide  you  all,  prepare  yourselves  for 
this  hard  entreaty  ;  and  rejoice  that  you  are  made  worthy 
for  Christ's  cause,  to  suffer,  and  bear  all  these  things.  And, 
I  beseech  you,  '  in  the  bowels  of  Jesus  Christ,'  that  none  of 
you,  in  this  case,  look  upon  his  particular  estate  ;  but  regard 
the  general  state  of  the  Church  of  God,  that  the  same  may 
go,  and  be  kept  together,  whithersoever  it  shall  please  God 
to  send  you.  Oh,  the  blessing  will  be  great  that  shall  en- 
sue this  care  ;  whereas  if  you  go  every  man  to  provide  for 
his  own  house,  and  to  look  for  his  own  family, — first  neg- 
lecting poor  Sion  ;  the  Lord  will  set  his  face  against  you, 
and  scatter  you  from  the  one  end  of  heaven  to  the  other  ; 
neither  shall  you  find  a  resting-place  for  the  soles  of  your 
feet,  or  a  blessing  upon  any  thing  you  take  in  hand  ! 

"  The  Lord,  my  Brethren  and  Sisters,  hath  not  forgotten 
to  be  gracious  unto  Sion  ;  you  shall  yet  find  days  of  peace 
and  of  rest,  if  you  continue  faithful.  This  stamping  and 
treading  of  us  under  his  feet,  this  subverting  of  our  cause 
and  right  in  judgment,  is  done  by  Him,  to  the  end  that  we 
should  search  and  try  our  ways,  and  repent  us  of  our  care- 
lessness, profaneness  and  rebellion  in  his  sight  :  but  he  will 
yet  maintain  the  cause  of  our  souls,  and  redeem  our  lives, 
if  we  return  to  him  :  yea,  he  will  be  with  us  in  fire  and  wa- 
ter, and  will  not  forsake  us,  if  our  hearts  be  only  "  [mis- 
print in  our  copy,]  "  and  especially  of  the  building  of  Sion, 
whithersoever  we  go. 


272  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

"  Let  not  those  of  you,  then,  that  either  have  stocks  in 
your  hands,  or  some  likely  trades  to  live  hy,  dispose  of 
yourselves  where  it  may  be  most  commodious  for  your  out- 
ward estate,  and,  in  the  mean  time,  suffer  the  poor  ones 
that  have  no  such  means,  either  to  bear  the  whole  work 
upon  their  weak  shoulders,  or  to  end  their  days  in  sorrow 
and  mourning,  for  want  of  outward  and  inward  comforts, 
in  the  land  of  strangers  ;  for  the  Lord  will  be  an  avenger 
of  all  such  dealings.  But  consult  with  the  whole  Church, 
yea,  with  the  Brethren  of  other  places,  how  the  Church  may 
be  kept  together  and  built,  whithersoever  they  go.  Let  not 
the  poor  and  the  friendless  be  forced  to  stay  behind  here, 
and  to  break  a  good  conscience  for  want  of  your  support 
and  kindness  unto  them,  that  they  may  go  with  you. 

"  And  here,  I  humbly  beseech  you, — not  in  any  outward 
regard,  as  I  shall  answer  before  my  God, — that  you  would 
take  my  poor  and  desolate  widow,  and  my  mess  of  father- 
less and  friendless  orphans,  with  you  into  exile,  whitherso-^ 
ever  you  go;  and  you  shall  find,  I  doubt  not,  that  the  bles- 
sed promises  of  my  God  made  unto  me  and  mine  will  ac- 
company  them,  and  even  the  whole  Church,  for  their  sakes; 
for  this  also  is  the  Lord's  promise  unto  the  holy  seed  ;  as 
you  shall  not  need  much  to  demand  what  they  shall  eat,  or 
wherewith  they  shall  be  clothed  ;  and  in  short  time,  I  doubt 
not  but  they  will  be  found  helpful  and  not  burthensome  to 
the  Church  :  only,  I  beseech  you,  let  them  not  continue  af- 
ter you  in  this  land,  where  they  must  be  forced  to  .go  again 
unto  Egypt ;  and  my  God  will  bless  you  even  with  a  joyful 
return  into  your  own  country  for  it.  There  are  of  you  who, 
I  doubt  not,  will  be  careful  of  the  performance  of  the  will 
of  your  dead  Brother,  in  this  point,  who  may  yet  live  to 
show  this  kindness  unto  yours  :  I  will  say  no  more. 

"Be  kind,  loving,  and  tender-hearted,  the  one  of  you  to- 


PENRY.  273 

wards  the  other  ;  labor  every  way  to  increase  love,  and  to 
show  the  duties  of  love  one  of  you  towards  another  ;  by  vis- 
iting, comforting,  and  relieving  one  the  other  ;  even  for  '  the 
reproach  of  the  heathen  '  that  are  round  about  us,  as  the 
Lord  saith.  Be  vvatching  in  prayer:  especially  remember 
those  of  our  Brethren  that  are  especially  endangered  ;  par- 
ticularly Ihose  our  two  Brethren,  Mr.  Studley  and  Robert 
Bowl,  whom  our  God  hath  strengthened  now  to  stand  in  the 
forefront  of  the  battle.  I  fear  me,  that  our  carelessness 
was  over  great  to  sue  unto  our  God  for  the  lives  of  these 
two  so  notable  lights  of  His  Church  who  now  rest  with  him  ; 
and  that  as  He  took  them  away  for  many  respects  seeming 
good  to  his  wisdom  ;  so  also,  that  we  might  learn  to  be 
more  careful  in  prayer  in  all  such  causes.  Pray  for  them 
then,  my  Brethren  ;  and  for  our  Brother  Mr.  Francis  John- 
son ;  and  for  me,  who  am  likely  to  end  my  days  either 
with  th'em,  or  before  them  ;  that  our  God  may  spare  us 
unto  his  Church,  if  it  be  his  good  pleasure,  or  give  us  ex- 
ceeding faithfulness  :  and  be  every  way  comfortable  unto 
the  sister  and  wife  of  the  dead ;  I  mean,  unto  my  beloved 
M.  Barrowe  and  M.  Greenwood  ;  whom  I  most  heartily  sa- 
lute, and  desire  much  to  be  comforted  in  their  God  ;  who, 
by  his  blessings  from  above,  will  countervail  unto  them  the 
want  of  so  notable  a  brother  and  a  husband. 

"I  would  wish  you,  earnestly,  to  write,  yea  to  send,  if 
you  may,  to  comfort  the  Brethren  in  the  West  and  North 
countries,  that  they  faint  not  in  these  troubles  ;  and  that 
also  you  may  have  of  their  advice,  and  they  of  yours,  what 
to  do  in  these  desolate  times.  And  if  you  think  it  anything 
for  their  further  comfort  and  direction,  send  them,  con- 
veniently, a  copy  of  this  my  Letter,  and  of  the  Declaration 
of  my  faith  and  allegiance  ;  wishing  them,  before  whomso- 
ever they  be  called,  that  their  own  months   be  not  had  ia 


274  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

witness  against  them,  in  anything.  Yea,  I  would  wish  you 
and  them  to  be  together,  if  you  may,  whithersoever  you  shall 
be  banished  ;  and  to  this  purpose,  to  bethink  you  before- 
hand where  to  be  ;  yea,  to  send  some  who  may  be  meet  to 
prepare  you  some  resting-place.  And,  be  all  of  you  as- 
sured, that  He  who  is  your  God  in  England,  will  be  your 
God  in  any  land  under  the  whole  heaven  ;  for  the  earth 
and  the  fuhiess  thereof  are  His,  and  blessed  are  they  that 
for  his  Cause  are  bereaved  of  any  part  of  the  same. 

"  Finally,  my  Brethren,  the  Eternal  God  bless  you  and 
yours,  that  I  may  meet  with  you  all,  unto  my  comfort,  in 
the  blessed  Kingdom  of  Heaven.  Thus,  having  from  my 
heart,  and  with  tears,  performed,  it  may  be,  my  last  duty 
towards  you  in  this  life,  I  salute  you  all  in  the  Lord,  both 
men  and  women  ;  even  those  whom  I  have  not  named,  as 
heartily  as  those  whose  names  1  have  mentioned  ;  for  all 
your  names  1  know  not.  And,  remember  to  stand  steadfast 
and  faithful  in  Jesus  Christ,  as  you  have  received  him,  unto 
your  immortality  ;  and  may  He  confirm  and  establish  you 
to  the  end,  for  the  praise  of  his  glory.    Amen. 

"  Your  loving  Brother  in  the   patience  and  sufferings 
of  the  Gospel,  John  Penry ;  a  Witness  of  Christ  in 
this  life,  and  a  partaker  of  the  glory  that  shall  be 
revealed." 
"The  twenty-fourth  of  the  fourth  month,  April,  1593." 
This  affecting  Christian  letter  was  doubtless  the  last  labor 
of  Penry's  hand.     He  was  condemned  on  the  21st  of  May, 
and  on  the  29th  of  the  same  month  the  warrant  for  his  exe- 
cution was  signed — archbishop  Whitgift  being  the  first  to 
set  his  name  to  the  instrument — and   sent  to  the   sheriff; 
who,  on  the  same  day,  erected  the  gallows,  and  sent  word 
to  the  prisoner  while  at  dinner,  that  he  must  prepare  to  die 
that  afternoon.     He  was  accordingly  hurried  into  the  cart, 


PENRY.  275 

and  driven  lo  the  place  of  execution.  "  The  fellow  "  was 
forbidden  to  address  the  people,  or  to  nnake  any  profession 
of  his  faith  towards  God,  or  of  loyalty  to  the  queen, — lest 
he  should  further  confirm  the  growing  favor  of  the  populace 
for  these  persecuted  Christians  the  Separatists,  and  deepen 
the  increasing  enmity  of  the  people  against  the  bishops.— 
"  He  was  turned  off  in  a  hurry,  about  five  of  the  clock,  in 
the  evening,  May  29th  1593,  in  the  thirty-fourth  year  of 
his  age."* 

I  have  dwelt  longer  on  this  affecting  case  of  persecution 
and  death,  because,  in  addition  to  its  intrinsic  interest,  the 
very  violence  of  it  proved  the  instrument  in  God's  hands  of 
stopping,  for  a  season,  the  effusion  of  blood,  and  the  sacri- 
fice of  life  for  the  truth's  sake.  Public  indignation  became 
so  loud  against  the  bishops  and  their  high  commission  asso- 
ciates, that,  they  deemed  it  unadvisable  openly,  to  put  any 
more  to  death  for  the  crime  of  denying  their  lordly  and 
tyrannical  power.t  Penry  was  the  last  of  the  Congrega- 
tional martyrs.j:  From  this  date  the  "  wily  ecclesiastics" 
substituted  for  death  by  the  common  hangman, — banish- 
ment, and  imprisonment,  and  stripes,  and  branding  with  hot 

*  Neal,  Vol.  I.  Chap.  8.  p.  534  }  Hanbury,  p.  82. 

t  An  Arian  and  a  Baptist  were  executed  in  March  lf)ll — 12, 
which  are  believed  to  have  been  the  last  victims  of  ecclesiastical 
tyranny  who  were  openly  murdered  in  England. — JNeal,  Vol.  II. 
pp.  118,  119;  Prince. 

I  Neal,  (His  New  Eng.  Vol.  1.  p.  71,)  tells  us,  that— Besides 
Thacker  and  Copping,  and  Barrowe,  Greenwood  and  Penry,  there 
was  one  William  Dennis  executed  at  Thetford,  in  Norfolk  county, 
about  this  time,  "  on  the  same  account;  and  a  great  many  poor 
families  utterly  ruined  by  severe  fines  and  imprisonments."  And 
Francis  Johnson,  in  Hanbury  (p.  103)  tells  us,  that  Daniel  Studley, 
one  of  the  elders  of  the  London  church,  was  "  first  adjudged  to 
death,  in  1593,  afterward  exiled." 


276  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

irons  upon  ihe  face,  and  the  slitting  of  noses,  and  gagging, 
and  sawing  off  of  the  ears,  and  such  like  Christian  chas- 
tisements, for  the  purpose  of  reducing  the  unruly  advocates 
of  a  scriptural  church  polity,  to  episcopal  confornnity.  But, 
bonds  and  imprisonment,  stripes  and  maiming,  cold  and 
nakedness,  banishment  and  exile,  were  all,  all  alike,  in  vain. 
Multitudes  were  willing  to  buy  the  truth  even  at  such  ruin- 
ous costs.  They  preferred  the  comfort  of  a  good  con- 
science in  a  dungeon,  to  the  outward  advantages  of  con- 
formity to  a  worldly  and  anti-scriptural  hierarchy. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  FIRST  ORGANIZED  CHURCH  OF  THE  SEPARATISTS,  1592. 

We  have  already  contemplated  the  abortive  efforts  of 
Robert  Browne  and  his  followers  to  establish  a  church  upon 
their  favorite  principles,  at  Middleburgh.  After  the  break- 
ing up  of  their  church,  and  the  apostasy  of  their  leader,  we 
have  no  evidence  that  the  Brownists,  as  such, ever  attempt- 
ed a  re-organization.  From  some  hints  which  are  given 
by  Barrowe,  and  Finch,  and  others,  we  are  led  to  the  con- 
clusion that  many  of  the  Brownists  followed  the  example 
of  their  leader,  so  far  at  least,  as  to  attend  the  Common- 
Prayer  worship  of  the  land.  Others  doubtless— and  those 
the  belter  part — consorted  with  such  men  as  Barrowe,  and 
Greenwood,  and  Penry,  and  other  excellent  men,  of  whom 
some  account  will  be  given  to  the  reader  in  due  time. 
These  all  built  upon  the  same  common  foundation  on  which 
Browne  had  erected  his  system  ; — Jesus  Christ  being  their 
chief  corner  stone,  and  the  Scriptures  their  only  law-book. 


A  CHURCH  ORGANIZED.  277 

It  was  somewhere  about  October,  1592,  that  the  perse- 
cuted Separatists  ventured  to  organize  a  Congregational 
church  in  the  city  of  London.  This  interesting  transac- 
tion is  described  as  having  taken  place  "  in  the  house  of 
one  Fox,*  in  St.  Nicholas'  Lane,  London,"  *  *  "  Or  at 
Mr.  Bilson's  house  in  Cree  Church,"  when  Master  Francis 
Johnson  was  chosen  pastor ;  and  Mr.  Greenwood  doctor ; 
and  Bowman  and  Lee,  deacons  ;  and  Studley  and  George 
Kniston,  apothecary,  were  chosen  elders,  *  *  all  in  one 
day,  by  their  congregation."  *  *  "  Being  there  present, 
the  said  Dan.  Studley,  Will.  Shepherd,  Will.  Marshal,  Joh. 
Becke,  with  the  names  of  a  great  many  more,  with  some 
women." 

The  above  is  extracted  from  the  examination  of  Daniel 
Buck,  himself  one  of  this  congregation,  who  was  arraigned 
before  "  three  magistrates"  for  his  non-conformity  and  ab- 
sence from  his  parish  church. 

The  prisoner  being  further  asked—"  What  vow,  or  pro- 
mise, he  had  made  when  he  came  first  into  their  society  .^" 
answered,  "  He  made  this  protestation.  That  he  would 
walk  with  the  rest  of  the  congregation  so  long  as  they  did 
walk  in  the  way  of  the  Lord,  and  as  far  as  might  be  war- 

*  Fox  seems  to  have  kept  a  sort  of  public  house — Jin  Ord'mury. 
Hanbury  informs  us,  that  there  was,  as  late  as  1834,  a  court- vird 
in  Nicholas  Lane,  with  these  words  ov^r  the  entr;ince — '■•  F-  xes 
Ordinary,  rebuilt  16b"6." — Whether  Fox  himself  was  a  Seu^rat- 
ist  or  not,  the  congregation  wouJd  be  likely  to  prefer  a  public  h  juse 
for  their  meetings  if  they  could  find  a  worthy  landlord,  becan.s'  th? 
going  in  and  out  of  many  people  would  be  less  likely  to  utiract 
notice  from  neighbors  or  passers-by.  Francis  Johnson  had  a  bro- 
ther who  kept  a  school,  probably  in  one  part  of  Fox's  house  Cliis 
brother  was  a  Separatist;  and  it  is  not  ujilikely  that  his  .s-'-.ool- 
room  was  the  place  where  the  church  was  formed.  He  w.-),,  ,->:  v.r- 
wards  arrested  and  imprisoned. 

24 


278  HISTORY  0?  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ranted  by  the  Word  of  God."  A  most  christian  protesta* 
tion,  surely  !  The  sanne  witness  further  testified,  that  at  the 
time  and  place  of  the  organization  of  the  church,  "  the  sa- 
crament of  baptism  was,  as  he  called  it,  delivered  there  to 
the  number  of  seven  persons,  by  Johnson."  "  But  they 
had  neither  godfathers  nor  godmothers.  And  he  took  wa- 
ter, and  washed  the  faces  of  them  that  were  baptized. 
The  children  that  were  there  baptized,  were  the  children 
of  Mr.  Studley,  Mr.  Lee,  with  others,  being  of  several 
years  of  age ;  saying  only  in  the  administration  of  this  sa- 
crament, '  I  do  baptize  thee  in  the  Name  of  the  Father,  of 
the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost ;'  without  using  any  other 
ceremony  therein,  as  is  now  usually  observed  according  to 
the  Book  of  Common  Prayer." 

"Being  further  demanded.  The  manner  of  the  Lord's 
supper  administered  among  them  .^  He  saith,  That  five 
white  loaves  or  more,  were  set  upon  the  table.  That  the 
pastor  did  break  the  bread,  and  then  delivered  it  to  some  of 
them,  and  the  deacons  delivered  to  the  rest ;  some  of  the 
concrregation  sitting,  and  some  standing  about  the  table. 
And,  That  the  pastor  delivered  the  cup  unto  one,  and  he 
to  another,  till  they  had  all  drunken  :  using  the  words  at 
the  delivery  thereof  according  as  it  is  set  down  in  the 
eleventh  of  [the  first  Epistle  to  the]  Corinthians,  the  24th 
verse.  Being  demanded.  Whether  they  used  to  make  a 
collection  or  gathering  among  them  ?  said,  That  there  is  a 
gathering  of  money  among  them.  The  which  money  is 
delivered  to  the  deacons,  to  be  distributed  according  to  their 
directions,  to  the  use  of  the  poor.  And,  he  heard  say, 
That  they  did  use  to  marry  in  their  congregation."* 

This  most  interesting  and  authentic  account  of  the  organ- 
ization and  worship  of  this  earliest  of  modern  Congrega* 

^  Hanbury,  pp.  85,  8G,  from  Strype,  Vol.  IV.  p.  174. 


A  CHURCH   ORGANIZED.  279 

tioiial  churches  furnishes  matter  for  much  reflection.  How 
sinnple,  how  prinnitive,  how  apostohcal  were  all  these  pro- 
ceedings !  Who  is  not  carried  back  in  his  imagination  to 
those  days  when  the  despised  and  persecuted  followers  of 
Jesus  of  Nazareth — the  Separatists  of  their  day — were  ac- 
customed to  assemble  in  a  private  house,  with  closed  doors, 
through  fear  of  the  Jews  ;  thus  to  worship  Christ  as  God, 
and  to  eat  and  drink  in  commemoration  of  his  dying  love  ? 

Some  further  light  is  shed  upon  the  character  and  con- 
duct of  these  lovers  of  scriptural  simplicity,  by  the  testi- 
mony of  a  bitter  enemy  :  who,  in  a  work  entitled  "  The 
Brownist's  Synagogue,"*  etc.,  thus  describes  their  meetings 
and  worship : 

"  In  that  house  where  they  intend  to  meet,  there  is  one 
appointed  to  keep  the  door,  for  the  intent,  to  give  notice  if 
there  should  be  any  insurrection,  warning  may  be  given 
them.  They  do  not  flock  together,  but  come  two  or  three 
in  a  company  ;  any  man  may  be  admitted  thither  ;  and  all 
being  gathered  together,  the  man  appointed  to  teach  stands 
in  the  midst  of  the  room,  and  his  audience  gather  about 
him.  He  prayeth  about  the  space  of  half  an  hour ;  and 
part  of  his  prayer  is,  that  those  which  came  thither  to  scoff 
and  laugh,  God  would  be  pleased  to  turn  their  hearts  ;  by 
which  means  they  think  to  escape  undiscovered.  His  ser- 
mon is  about  the  space  of  an  hour,  and  then  doth  another 
stand  up  to  make  the  text  more  plain  ;  and  at  the  latter  end, 
he  entreats  them  all  to  go  home  severally,  lest,  the  next 
meeting,  they  should  be  interrupted  by  those  which  are  of 
the  opinion  of  the  wicked.  They  seem  very  steadfast  in 
their  opinions,  and  say,  *  rather  than  they  will  turn,  they 
will  burn.'  "  p.  5. 

*  See  Hanbury,  ut  sup.  Note  a. 


280  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

An  account,  coming  from  an  enemy,  no  way  discredita- 
ble to  our  pious  and  suffering  ancestors. 

The  little  church  of  despised  believers  were  not  per- 
mitted long  to  enjoy  their  dearly  bought  privileges.  The 
spies  of  the  bishops  were  on  the  alert.  And,  though  the 
church  frequently  changed  the  place  of  meeting  ;  going 
from  house  to  house  ;  and  sometimes  leaving  the  city,  and 
resorting  to  the  woods ; — yet,  they  were  discovered  by  the 
bishop  of  London's  spies,  as  early  as  the  3d  of  April,  1593, 
on  a  Lord\s  day,  as  they  were  assembled  at  Islington,  a  vil- 
lage near  London,  in  a  public  house  ;  the  very  same  place 
in  which  the  congregation  of  "  Gaspellus,"  of  which  Cuth- 
bert  Sympson  was  deacon,  were  discovered  in  the  reign  of 
Mary.*  Of  the  number  present,  there  were  seized  and 
sent  two  by  two  to  the  different  gaols  about  London,  "  about 
some  Jifty-six  persons."  These  persons,  as  they  declared 
to  the  Council,  were  "  hearing  the  Word  of  God  truly 
taught,  praying,  and  praising  God  for  all  his  favors  showed 
unto  us,  and  to  her  Majesty,  your  Honors,  [this  is  part  of  a 
petition  addressed  to  the  Council  by  the  imprisoned  Sepa- 
ratists] and  the  whole  land  ;  desiring  our  God  to  be  merci- 
ful unto  us,  and  unto  our  gracious  princess  and  country  :  be- 
ing employed  in  these  holy  actions,  and  no  other,  as  the 
parties  who  disturbed  us  can  testify.  They  were  taken  in 
the  very  same  place  where  the  persecuted  church  and  mar- 
tyrs were  enforced  to  use  the  like  exercise  in  Queen  Ma- 
ry's days."t 

These  persons,  at  their  examination,  confessed,  that  for 
several  years  they  had  been  accustomed  to  meet  at  five 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  in  the  summer  season,  in  the  fields 
or  woods ;  and  in  the  winter  at  private  houses,  to  spend 
the  Lord's  day  as  above  described.     That  their  habit  was, 


*  See  back  p.  220.  t  Hanbury,  pp.  88,  89. 


THE  SEPARATISTS  PERSECUTED.  281 

to  continue  all  day  together  engaged  in^^^gious  exercises  : 
and,  at  the  close,  to  take  up  a  collection  to  defray  the  ex- 
penses of  the  meeting ;  and  to  help  their  brethren  who 
were  in  prison.* 

This  ingenuous  christian  confession  had  no  effect  upon 
their  judges.  The  prisoners  were  remanded  to  their  pri- 
sons. These  added  to  the  number  who  were  already  in- 
carcerated, made  the  sum  total  of  the  Separatists  "  within 
the  prisons  about  London, — not  to  speak  of  other  gaols 
throughout  the  land, — about  three  score  and  twelve  persons, 
men  and  women,  young  and  old,  lying  in  cold,  in  hunger, 
in  dungeons,  in  irons  !"t 

What  an  exhibition  of  cruelty  on  the  one  hand,  and  of 
suffering  on  the  other,  is  here  furnished  us  !  Seventy-two 
persons — young  and  old,  men  and  women — confined  in 
loathsome  gaols,  among  the  basest  malefactors,  suffering 
extreme  cruelty,  for  meeting  on  the  Lord's  day  in  the 
woods,  or  in  private  houses,  to  spend  the  whole  day  in 
prayer  and  religious  exercises,  without  a  printed  book  to 
guide  them,  or  a  Popish  square  cap,  surplice,  and  cope,  and 
tippet,  to  annoy  them ! 

But  I  must  let  them  speak  again  of  their  hard  usage.  In 
another  petition  which  these  sufferers  addressed  to  the 
Council :  They  reminded  their  lordships,  that  besides  such 
of  them  as  were  undergoing  "  miserable  usage"  in  the 
Fleet  prison,  some  of  their  fraternity  were  "  laden  with  as 
many  irons  as  they  could  hear'''*  in  Newgale  ;  others  were 
confined  "  among  the  most  facinorous  and  vile  persons  ; 
where  it  is  lamentable  to  relate  how  many  of  these  inno- 

*  See  JNeal,  I.  p.  517,  from  Strype. 

t  I  quote  the  language  of  the  sufferers  themselves, —  Hanbury, 
ut.  Sup. 

24* 


282  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

cents  have  perished  within  these  five  years,  and  of  these, 
some  aged  widows,  aged  men,  and  young  maidens,  etc.  ;^' 
others  had  been  "  grievously  beaten  with  cudgels"  in  bride- 
well, and  cast  into  a  place  there,  called  Little  Ease,  for  re- 
fusing to  attend  their  chapel-service.  "  Upon  none,"  they 
continue,  thus  committed  by  the  prelates,  and  dying  in  their 
prisons,  "  is  any  search  or  inquest  suffered  to  pass,  as  by 
law  in  like  case  is  provided."* 

In  another  place  the  sufferers  suggest  their  apprehen- 
sion, that  the  bishops  intended  "  to  imprison  them  unto 
deaths  as  they  have  done  seventeen  or  eighteen  others^  in  the 
same  noisome  gaols,  within  these  six  years.'''' 

They  complain  bitterly  of  the  outrageous  treatment  to 
which  they  were  exposed  out  of  prison  and  in.  Speaking 
of  the  bishop  of  London  and  "  that  whole  lineage,"  they  say  : 
"  Their  unbridled  slanders  ;  their  lawless  privy-searches  ; 
their  violent  breaking  open  and  rifling  our  houses  ;  their 
lamentable  and  barbarous  usage  of  women  and  young 
children  in  these  hostile  assaults,  and  ever  robbing  and  tak- 
ing away  whatsoever  they  think  meet  from  us :  .  .  their 
dealing  this  way  towards  us,  is  so  vvoful.  Right  Honorable, 
as  we  may  truly  demand  with  grief  of  heart,  whether  the 
foreign  enemy,  or  our  own  native  countrymen,  do  possess 
and  bear  rule  over  us  in  our  dear  and  native  country  !  .  . 
Bishop  Bonner,  Story,  Weston,  dealt  not  after  this  sort ;  for 
those  whom  they  committed  close,  they  brought  them,  in 
short  space,  openly  into  Smithfield,  to  end  their  misery, 
and  to  begin  their  never-ending  joy ;  whereas  Bishop  Elmor 
[Aylmore],  Doctor  Stanhope,  and  Mr.  Justice  Young,  with 
the  rest  of  that  persecuting  and  blood-thirsty  faculty,  will 
do  neither  of  these.  .  . 

"  There  are  many  of  us,  by  the  mercies  of  God,  still  out 


*  Hanbury,p.  b8. 


THE  SEPARATISTS  PERSECUTED.  283 

of  their  hands  :  .  .  we  have  as  good  warrant  to  reject  the 
ordinances  of  Antichrist,  and  labor  for  the  recovery  of 
Christ's  holy  ordinances,  as  our  fathers  in  Queen  Mary's 
days.  .   . 

"  Are  we  malefactors  ?  Are  we  anywise  undutiful  to 
our  Prince  ?  Maintain  we  any  errors  ?  Let  us,  then,  be 
judicially  convicted  thereof,  and  delivered  to  the  civil  au- 
thority. But  let  not  these  bloody  men  both  accuse,  con- 
demn, and  close  murder  us,  after  this  sort ;  contrary  to  all 
law,  equity,  and  conscience  ;  where,  alone,  they  are  the 
plaintiff,  the  accusers,  the  judges,  and  the  executioners  of 
their  most  fearful  barbarous  tyranny  !  They  should  not,  by 
the  laws  of  the  land,  go  any  further,  in  cases  of  Religion, 
than  their  own  Ecclesiastical  Censures,  and  then  refer  us 
to  the  Civil  Powers.  Their  forefathers,  Gardener,  Bonner, 
Story,  dealt  thus  equally ;  and  we  crave  but  their  equity. 
Oh,  let  her  excellent  Majesty  our  Sovereign,  and  your  Wis- 
doms, consider  and  accord  unto  us  this  our  just  Petition.  .  . 

"  We  crave  for  all  of  us,  but  liberty  either  to  die  openly, 
or  to  live  openly  in  the  land  of  our  nativity.  If  we  deserve 
death,  it  beseemeth  the  Magistrates  of  Justice  not  to  see  us 
closely  murdered  ;  .  .  if  we  be  guiltless,  we  crave  but  the 
benefit  of  our  innocency,  that  we  may  have  peace  to  serve 
God  and  our  Prince,  in  the  place  and  sepulchres  of  our 
fathers. 

"Thus  protesting  our  innocency;  complaining  of  vio- 
lence and  wrong  ;  and  crying  for  Justice  on  the  behalf,  and 
in  the  name  of  that  Righteous  Judge — the  God  of  Equity 
and  Justice, — we  continue  our  prayers  unto  Him  for  her 
Majesty,  and  your  Honors."* 

It  was  among  these  afflicted  and  tormented  Christians 
that  Barrowe,and  Greenwood,  and  Penry  suffered  so  long  : 

*  Hanbury,  pp,  89,  90. 


284  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

one  of  whom  described  his  own  sufferings  and  those  of  his 
companions  thus  :  "  These  bloody  men  (the  ecclesiastical 
commissioners)  will  allow  us  neither  meat,  drink,  fire,  lodg- 
ing; nor  suffer  any  whose  hearts  the  Lord  would  stir  up  for 
our  relief,  to  have  any  access  to  us  :  by  which  means  sev- 
enteen or  eighteen  have  perished  in  the  noisome  gaols, 
within  these  six  years;  some  of  us  had  not  one  penny 
about  us  when  we  were  sent  to  prison,  nor  anything  to  pro- 
cure a  maintenance  for  ourselves  and  families,  but  our 
handy  labor  and  trades  ;  by  which  means,  not  only  we 
ourselves,  but  our  families  and  children  are  undone  and 
starved.  *  *  That  which  we  crave  for  us  all,  is  the  liberty 
to  die  openly,  or  live  openly  in  the  land  of  our  nativity  : 
if  we  deserve  death,  let  us  not  be  closely  murthered,  yea 
starved  to  death,  with  hunger  and  cold,  and  stifled  in  loath- 
some dungeons." 

"  Among  those  who  perished  in  prison  during  this  per- 
secution," says  Neal,  "  was  one  Mr.  Roger  Rippon,  who, 
dying  in  Newgate,  his  fellow  prisoners  put  this  inscription 
upon  his  coffin  :" — 

"  This  is  the  corpse  of  Roger  Rippon^  a  servant  of  Christ, 
and  her  majestifs  faithful  subject^  who  is  the  last  of  six- 
teen or  seventeen  which  that  great  enemy  of  God,  the  arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury,  [  IVhitgift]  with  his  high  commis- 
sioners, have  murthered  in  Newgate,  within  these  five  years, 
manifestly  for  the  testimony  of  Jesus  Christ :  his  soul  is 
now  with  the  Lord,  and  his  blood  cried  (crieth  ?)  for  speedy 
vengeance  against  that  great  enemy  of  the  saints,  and 
against  Mr.  Richard  Young  [a  justice  of  the  peace  in  Lon- 
don— a  bishop's  tool — ]  who,  in  this,  and  many  the  like 
points,  hath  abused  his  power  for  the  upholding  of  the  Ro- 
mish antichrist,  prelacy,  and  priesthood.  He  died  A.  D. 
1592."* 

*  His.  Pur.  Vol.  1.  p.  520;  Hanbury,  p.  90. 


THE  SEPARATISTS  PERSECUTED.  285 

The  houses  of  the  suspected  Separatists  were  broken 
open  and  ransacked  in  the  night,  without  so  much  as  a  war- 
rant for  the  deed  ;  their  property  plundered  ;  and  them- 
selves hurried  to  prison,  and  to  death  ;  for  no  other  crime 
than  that  of  meeting  together,  as  did  the  primitive  disci- 
ples, and  "  spending  the  whole  day  in  prayer,  expounding 
the  Scriptures,  and  other  religious  exercises." 

To  cover  the  cruelty  of  their  proceedings,  the  bishops 
accused  the  Separatists  of  seditious  designs  against  the 
State.  But  nothing  of  this  kind  could  ever  be  proved 
against  them.  They  perseveringly  protested  their  loyalty  ; 
and  some  of  those  who  were  publicly  executed,  (as  we 
have  seen)  commended  their  sovereign  to  God  with  their 
expiring  breath.* 

*  Hume  intimates,  (Vol.  111.  p.  58)  that  the  '■^political  specula- 
tions,  and  the  principles  o?  civil  liberty,'"  which  the  Puritans  enter- 
tained, "  rendered  them  in  a  peculiar  manner  the  objects  of  Eliz- 
abeth's aversion."  It  is  not  improbable  that  this  politic  princess 
perceived  the  tendency  of  Puritan  principles,  and  particularly,  of 
the  Separatist's  principles  towards  civil  liberty  ;  but  after  a  some- 
what careful  examination  of  their  history,  1  can  discover  no  avowal 
of  such  opinions  ;  nor  practical  demonstration  of  such  principles. 
Barrowe  and  Greenwood  were  condemned  ^^  for  disturbance  of  the 
State"  but,  at  the  time  of  their  death,  they  gave  such  evidence  of 
their  loyalty  to  their  queen,  praying  so  earnestly  for  her  long  and 
prosperous  reign,  that  Elizabeth  is  said  to  have  repented  that  she 
had  suffered  them  to  be  executed. 

It  was  an  artifice  of  her  bishops,  in  order  to  cover  their  own  cru- 
elty, to  accuse  these  men  of  disloyalty.  But  history  has  lifted  the 
veil,  and  shown  the  lawn  of  the  bishops  to  be  more  deeply  stained 
with  tbe  blood  of  these  martyrs,  than  even  the  purpleof  the  queen. 
It  was,  however,  the  policy  of  the  Court  to  confound  names  and 
parties  which  were  entirely  distinct :  viz.,  The  advocates  of  cirAl 
liberty  in  the  parliatnents,  and  the  advocates  of  religious  liberty  in 
the  church.  Such  men  as  Peter  Wentworth  and  attorney  Mor- 
rice,  in  the  House  of  Commons,  were  stigmatized  as  2^uritans,andi 


286  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Thus  suffered  the  men  who  maintained  most  of  the  fun- 
damental principles  and  important  doctrines  of  modern 
Congregationalism. 

They  were  men  of  deep-toned  piety,  of  ardent  zeal, 
of  unflinching  principle,  and  unconquerable  courage.  They 
were  the  most  decided  and  uncompromising  Puritans  of 
their  time.  The  more  moderate,  contrived  to  avoid  the 
laws  ;  but,  these  men  would  hold  no  parley  with  unscrip- 
tural  requisitions.  They  would  not,  even  in  apj^earance, 
countenance  the  errors  of  the  English  Hierarchy.  They 
stood  fast  in  the  liberty  wherewith  Christ  himself  had  made 
them  free.  They  appealed  to  the  Word  of  God  as  the 
standard  of  their  faith,  as  their  rule  of  church  government, 
and  of  religious  practice.  They  aimed  at  primitive  sim- 
plicity in  their  church  polity  :  and  in  defence  of  this,  they 
begged  the  privilege  of  confronting  their  adversaries  ;  and 
declared  their  readiness  to  show  their  own  church  order 
"  to  be  warranted  by  the  Word  of  God,  allowable  by  her 
Majesty's  laws,  and,  in  no  way  prejudicial  to  her  sovereign 
power :"  *  *  *  to  disprove  the  public  hierarchy,  worship, 
and  government,  by  such  evidences  of  Scripture  as  their 
adversaries  should  not  be  able  to  withstand  ;  protesting,  that 
if  they  failed  herein,  they  were  not  only  willing  to  sustain 

classed  with  Cartwright  -and  Barrowe.  This  was  done,  that  the 
bad  names  of  the  latter  (bad  only  among  bad  men)  might  embar- 
rass the  efforts  of  the  former,  to  throw  off  from  Parliament  the  in- 
cubus of  Elizabeth's  tyranny,  and  to  extract  the  poisonous  fangs 
from  the  bishops'  jaws.  The  nation  had  become  accustomed  to  the 
persecution  and  imprisonment  of  the  Puritans,  and  would  be  likely 
to  submit  more  patiently  to  the  incarceration  of  Wentworth,  and 
the  degradation  and  imprisonment  of  Morrice,  if  called  Puritans. 
The  parties  thus  identified  by  the  policy  of  the  Court,  and  by  their 
own  sufferings,  were  naturally  drawn  together,  and  ultimately  be- 
came one. 


THE  SEPARATISTS  PERSECUTED.  287 

such  deserved  punishment  as  should  be  inflicted  upon  them, 
but  to  become  conformable  for  the  future."  And  all  this 
they  promised,  "  if  we,"  say  they,  "  overthrow  not  our  ad- 
versaries,— we  do  not  say  if  our  adversaries  overcome  not 
us."  This  petition  was  addressed  to  the  Privy  Council. 
In  other  petitions,  the  sufferers  begged  to  be  tried  by  due 
process  of  law  ;  or  to  have  their  principles  examined  by  fair 
discussion  ;  and  "  If,"  say  they,  "  it  should  be  objected  that 
none  of  our  party  are  worthy  to  be  thus  disputed  with,  we 
think  we  should  prove  the  contrary  ;  for,  there  are  three  or 
four  of  them  in  the  city  of  London,  and  more  elsewhere, 
who  have  been  zealous  preachers  in  the  parish  assemblies, 
and  are  not  ignorant  of  the  Latin,  Greek,  and  Hebrew 
tongues,  nor  otherwise  unlearned  ;  and  generally  confessed 
to  be  of  honest  conversation."  But  all  was  in  vain. 
"  Chistianos  ad  leones  !" — away  with  the  Brownists  !  "  Ad 
patibulum  !  ad  patibulum  !" — to  the  gallows,  to  the  gallows 
with  them  !  was  the  ex-cathedra  command.*  The  crowded 
prisons,  the  public  executions,  by  the  common  hangmen,  of 
men  of  learning  and   piety, — against  whom  no  crime  had 

*  It  was  the  policy  of  the  Roman  priests,  to  persuade  the  com- 
mon people,  that  all  the  ills  which  befel  the  nation  were  attribiita^ 
ble  to  the  anger  of  the  gods  against  the  impious  Christians. 
They  thus  incited  the  populace,  when  any  calamity  befel  the  state^ 
to  demand  that  the  Christians  should  be  thrown  to  the  wild  beasts, 
which  were  kept  for  the  purpose  of  devouring  criminals.  "  Chris- 
tlafios  ad  leones !''  was  the  popular  cry;  and  the  judicial  decision 
was  its  echo — Chrislianos  ad  Leones  ! 

It  is  related  that  the  infamous  Duke  of  Alva— the  notorious  per- 
secutor of  the  Protestants  of  the  Netherlands — had  in  his  council 
(called  by  the  Flemings  "  the  Council  of  Blood")  one  Hessels, 
who  customarily  slept  during  the  trial  of  the  prisoners  arraigned 
for  heresy  ;  when  aroused  from  his  dreams,  and  his  opinion  de- 
manded, his  uniform  reply  was  :  *'  Ad  patibulum,  ad  patibulum  !^* 
—  to  the  gallows,  to  the  gallows,  with  them  ! 


288  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

been  proved,  and  to  whom  scarcely  the  apology  for  a  trial 
had  been  granted— but  too  plainly  show  the  spirit  of  the 
limes,  and  the  temper  of  those  in  authority.  At  the  same 
time  they  illustrate,  most  affectingly,  the  value  which  our 
religious  ancestors  attached  to  their  principles  of  church 
order  and  discipline  and  worship,  and  suggest  to  their  de- 
scendants their  duty  to  maintain  these  principles  at  every 
hazard. 

I  have  been  thus  particular  in  the  history  of  the  Brownists 
and  Separatists,  because  they  were  men  of  primitive  prin- 
ciples, and  primitive  courage;  to  whom  the  world  is  far 
more  deeply  indebted  for  the  development  and  mainte- 
nance of  the  principles  of  civil  and  religious  liberty  than  it 
seems  disposed  to  acknowledge.  And,  as  for  Congrega- 
tionalism, these  were  the  men,  who,  at  the  hazard  of  their 
lives,  dug  the  pure  ore  from  the  mine.  As  found  in  their 
hands,  it  was  not  free  from  impure  admixtures,  nor  did  it 
assume  the  attractive  form  into  which  more  skilful  hands 
afterwards  wrought  it :  nevertheless,  it  was  the  precious  ore 
of  scriptural  truth.  The  general  principles  embraced  by 
Browne,  and  after  him  by  the  Separatists,  were  essentially 
the  same  which  are  now  known  in  Great  Britain  and  Amer- 
ica as  Congregationalism. 

The  Confessions  of  doctrinal  and  ecclesiastical  faith, 
which  were  published  during  this  period  (1586—1593) 
would  be  readily  adopted,  with  very  slight  modifications,  by 
every  consistent  and  intelligent  Congregational  church  now 
existing.  That  the  reader  may  judge  for  himself  upon  this 
point,  and  as  illustrative  of  the  intense  care  with  which  our 
ecclesiastical  ancestors  searched  the  Scriptures  to  ascertain 
ihe  truth,  I  have  given,  entire,  in  the  Appendix,  "  A  True 
Description,outofthe  Word  ofGod,ofthe  Visible  Church;" 
published  in  the  year  1589,  and  written,  probably,  by  one 


THE  PURITANS  AND  SEPAEATISTS.  289 

of  the  pastors  of  that  very  church  from  which  the  Congre- 
gational churches  of  New  England  are  directly  descended,* 


CHAPTER  XVL 


THE  CONFORMING  PURITANS  AND  SEPARATISTS. — THE   BAN- 
ISHMENT OF  THE  SEPARATISTS. 

We  have  now  arrived  at  a  period  in  our  church  history 
of  great  importance  ;  the  tinne  when  our  ancestors  began  to 
flee  to  Holland.  The  interest  which  we  feel  in  this  period 
does  not,  however,  arise  so  much  from  the  events  immedi- 
ately connected  with  their  banishment,  as  from  the  remote 
consequences  of  that  banishment.  But  before  we  proceed 
to  consider  either,  it  may  be  well  to  review  briefly  the  rela- 
tive state  of  the  contending  parties  in  England.  —  The 
bishops  supported  by  the  Court,  and  the  Puritans,  including 
the  conforming  Puritans  and  the  Separatists — supported  by 
the  Bible. 

To  understand  fully  the  history  of  those  times,  it  will 
be  necessary  to  bear  in  mind,  that,  though  the  opposers 
of  the  English  Hlerarchal  Establishment  are  known  by  the 
common  appellation  of  Puritans,  yet  there  were,  in  fact,  two 
divisions  at  least,  among  the  Puritans  themselves  :  namely, 
— The  conformable  Puritans;  or  those  who,  though  dis- 
satisfied with  the  Church  as  established  by  law,  yet  re- 
mained nominally  connected  with  it;  and  the  Separatists. 
The  conformable  Puritans  were  the  men  who,Neal  tells  us, 
"  made  a  shift  to  evade  the  form  of  the  law,  by  coming  to 
church  when  Common  Prayer  was  almost  over,  and  by  re- 

*  See  Appendix,  No,  1. 

25 


290  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATlONALISrvI. 

ceiving  the  sacrament  in  some  churches  where  it  was  ad- 
ministered with  some  latitude." 

The  Separatists,  generally  called  Brownists  by  the  writ- 
ers of  that  day,  and  sometimes,  Barrowists — were  for  an 
entire  separation  from  the  Church  of  England,  as  utterly 
unchristian  in  its  organization.  Now,  between  these  two 
classes  of  Puritans,  it  is  painful  to  say,  that  there  was 
scarcely  less  friendship  than  between  them  and  the  court 
party.  The  conforming  Puritans  were  in  favor  of  an 
ecclesiastical  establishment ;  "  were  no  enemies  to  the 
name  or  function  of  a  bishop,"  provided  he  did  not  as- 
sume/«r£^  divino  authority  over  his  presbyters,  and  would 
manage  the  affairs  of  his  diocese  in  concurrence  with  them  ; 
neither  did  they  object  to  "  prescribed  forms  of  prayer," 
provided  some  latitude  was  allowed  the  minister  to  vary, 
and  sometimes  to  use  his  own  conceptions  or  words ;  nor 
were  they  averse  "  to  any  decent  and  distinct  habits  for  the 
clergy,  that  were  not  derived  from  Popery  :"* — in  a  word, 
they  were  for  altering  and  reforming,  but  still  (or  retaining 
the  national  church. 

The  Separatists,  on  the  contrary,  were  for  cutting  up  the 
whole  ecclesiastical  establishment,  root  and  branch.  They 
believed  the  Church  of  England  to  be  none  other  than  a 
daughter  of  the  "  Mother  of  Harlots  ;"  who  sanctioned 
many  of  the  essential  principles  of  Popery,  and  recognized 
most  of  its  errors  in  government,  discipline,  and  worship. 
They  believed  that  there  was  no  cure  for  the  evils  under 
which  they  groaned  but  in  the  entire  destruction  of  the  very 
system  on  which  these  evils  were  grafted  ;  and  to  which 
they  were,  in  a  manner,  indigenous.  Such  was  their  faith  ; 
and  their  practice,  as  we  have  seen,  was  in  conformity  with 
their  belief:  they  were  straight  forward,  uncompromising, 
Christian  reformers. 

*  Neal,  I.  pp.  558—560. 


THE  PURITANS  AND  SEPARATISTS.         291 

Differing  as  these  two  parties  did  in  their  ecclesiastical 
principles,  and  in  their  conduct,  it  should  not,  perhaps,  be 
a  matter  of  surprise,  that  there  was  some  conflict  between 
them.  The  theory  and  practice  of  either  party  was,  in  fact, 
a  tacit  condemnation  of  the  other.  It  would  have  been 
well  had  they  gone  no  further.  But  truth  compels  us  to 
confess,  that  it  was  far  otherwise.  The  conforming  Puri- 
tans regarded  the  Separatists  as  rash,  heady,  visionary,  un- 
reasonable men  ;  and  were  not  slow  to  tell  them  so.  The 
Separatists,  on  the  other  hand,  regarded  the  conforming 
Puritans  as  timid,  trimming,  time-serving  men  ;  whose  prin- 
ciples and  practice,  so  far  as  ecclesiastical  matters  were 
concerned,  were  anti-scriptural  and  unjustifiable  ;  and  they 
told  them  all  this  in  plain,  and  sometimes  rough  English. 
Holding  up  the  Bible,  and  pointing  to  the  utter  insufficiency 
of  all  the  partial  reformations  which  had  taken  place  in  the 
English  Church,  the  Separatist  proclaimed  the  utter  hope- 
lessness of  any  efficient  and  lasting  reform,  until  the  Word 
of  God  was  adopted  as  the  only  infallible  guide  to  the  order, 
and  discipline,  and  worship  of  the  Christian  church. 

With  these  differing  views  the  parties  sought  their  de- 
sired objects  by  corresponding  measures.  The  Separatists, 
while  they  proclaimed  their  attachment  to  the  civil  govern- 
ment of  the  kingdom,  openly  and  earnestly  sought  the  utter 
overthrow  and  annihilation  of  the  entire  ecclesiastical  gov- 
ernment of  the  realm.  The  Hierarchy — I  mean  the  bishops 
and  their  coadjutors — found  no  difficulty  in  persuading  the 
queen  that  the  interests  of  the  establishment  and  the  crown 
were  identical  ;  and  that,  if  these  restless  spirits  were  per- 
mitted to  erect  churches  after  their  favorite  model,  in  which 
the  people  should  manage  their  own  affairs,  and  choose 
their  own  officers,  the  next  step  would  be,  to  claim  the  same 
prerogatives  in  civil  matters:    and  then,   farewell   to  the 


292  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

crown  and  throne  of  England.  Hence,  the  merciless  alli- 
ance between  the  bishops  and  the  court,  to  crush  and  utterly 
to  extirpate  the  Separatists. 

The  conforming  Puritans,  in  compliance  with  their 
adopted  principles,  pursued  a  different  course  to  obtain 
their  desired  ends.  They  sought  reformation^  not  a  new 
order  of  things  ;  they  therefore  applied  with  petitions,  and 
supplications,  and  propositions  to  her  Majesty,  to  his  Grace 
the  archbishop — who  was  the  master  spirit  of  the  whole 
Establishment — to  the  Convocation  of  the  clergy,  and  to  the 
Parliament.  The  ComiTK)ns  would  gladly  have  relieved 
the  Puritans  ;  and  actually  set  about  the  work.  But  the 
archbishop  interposed,  and  stirred  up  the  queen  to  stop  the 
mouths  and  measures  of  the  Commons  :  all  the  petitions 
and  supplications  of  the  Puritans  were  utterly  unavailing. 
The  court  and  the  bishops  either  regarded  these  petitions, 
etc.  as  entering  wedges  to  other  innovations,  and  therefore 
to  be  rejected  ;  or,  perhaps,  flattered  themselves  that  the 
mass  of  the  petitioners  might  be  retained  in  the  church, 
from  which  they  were  so  unwilling  to  separate,  without  any 
concessions  or  alterations.  At  all  events,  so  far  as  any 
mitigation  of  their  hardships  was  concerned,  the  Puritans 
might  as  well  have  addressed  the  four  winds  of  heaven,  as 
the  Queen,  Parliament,  Convocation,  and  Archbishop  of 
England.  Nevertheless,  the  more  moderate  and  timid  of 
the  petitioners  still  kept  within  the  verge  of  the  church,  and 
made  a  compromise  with  their  consciences,  so  far  as  to 
escape  the  edge  of  the  law.  Others,  however,  and  these 
not  a  few — were  driven  into  open  separation.  MuUitudes, 
in  different  parts  of  the  kingdom,  were  gradually  brought 
into  the  sentiments  of  the  Separatists,  and  resolved  to  have 
no  further  fellowship  with  the  unfruitful  works  of  darkness. 
They  consequently  withdrew  themselves  entirely  from  the 


THE  EXILE  ACT.  293 

parish  churches,  and  assembled  in  private  houses,  in  the 
woods,  or  wherever  they  could  hear  the  gospel  preached 
without  the  accompaniments  of  the  Common  Prayer,  and 
the  Popish  rites,  ceremonies,  and  dresses. 

The  Exile  Act. 

To  check  the  progress  of  the  Separatists — or  Brownists 
as  they  were  usually  called  by  their  enemies — the  parlia- 
ment of  1592 — 3,  framed  what  Neal  calls,  "  one  of  the  se- 
verest acts  of  oppression  and  cruelty  that  ever  was  passed 
by  the  representatives  of  a  Protestant  nation,  and  a  free 
people."  It  was  entitled,  "  An  Act  for  the  punishment  of 
jjersons  ohstinately  refusing  to  come  to  church,  and  persuad- 
ing others  to  impugn  the  Queen^s  authority  in  ecclesiastical 
causes^ 

By  this  act,  any  person  above  the  age  of  sixteen,  who 
should  neglect  to  repair  to  some  church,  chapel,  or  usual 
place  of  common  prayer,  for  the  space  of  one  month, 
"  without  lawful  cause,"  was  to  be  committed  to  prison 
without  bail :  and  should  he  refuse  to  conform  after  three 
month's  imprisonment,  he  was  required  to  "  abjure  the 
realm,  and  go  into  perpetual  banishment ;"  and,  if  he  re- 
fused to  do  this,  or  returned  after  banishment,  he  was  doom- 
ed to  "  Suffer  death  loithout  benefit  of  clergy^  And  the 
same  punishment  was  denounced  upon  all  such,  as,  by 
"  printing,  writing,  or  express  words,"  should  impugn  the 
queen's  ecclesiastical  supremacy,  or  should  attempt  to  per- 
suade others  to  neglect  the  law-established  worship  of  the 
kingdom  ;  or  should  be  present  at  any  "  unlawful  assembly, 
conventicle,  or  meeting,  under  color  or  pretence  of  any  ex* 
ereise  of  relision."* 


*  See   Neal,  Vol.  I.  pp.  513—515;    Hume,  Vol.  HI.  Chap.  43, 
pp.  188-191. 

25* 


294  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

It  was  while  this  act  was  under  discussion,  that  the  cele- 
brated Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  and  a  Mr.  Finch  uttered  the 
following  sentiments,  which  deserve  our  attention  as  illus- 
trating the  progress  of  Congregationalism  up  to  1592 — 3  ; 
and  the  hatred  of  the  ruling  powers  towards  such  as  em- 
braced these  principles  of  church  order. 

Sir  Walter  said  :  "  In  my  conceit  the  Brownists  are  wor- 
thy to  be  rooted  out  of  the  commonwealth  ;  but  what  dan- 
ger may  grow  to  ourselves  if  this  law  pass,  it  were  fit  to  be 
considered.  For  it  is  to  be  feared,  that  men  not  guilty  will 
be  included  in  it.  And  this  law  is  hard  that  taketh  life,  and 
sendeth  into  banishment,  where  men's  intentions  shall  be 
judged  by  a  jury,  and  they  shall  be  judges  what  another 
means.  But  that  law  that  is  against  a  fact  is  but  just ;  and 
punish  the  fact  as  severely  as  you  will.  If  two  or  three 
thousand  Brownists  meet  at  the  sea,  at  whose  charge  shall 
they  be  transported,  or  whither  will  you  send  them  ?  I  am 
sorry  for  it.,  I  am  afraid  there  are  near  twenty  thousand  of 
them  in  England.,  and  when  they  he  gone,  who  shall  main- 
tain  their  wives  and  children  V  Mr.  Finch  said,  "  There 
be  great  faults  in  the  preamble  and  in  the  body  of  this  BilL 
It  pretendeth  a  punishment  only  to  Brownists  and  Sectari- 
ans ;  but  throughout  the  whole  Bill,  not  one  thing  that  con- 
cerneth  a  Brownist ;  and  if  we  make  a  law  against  Bar- 
rowists,  and  Brownists,  let  us  set  down  a  note  of  them,  wha 
they  are.  But  this  Bill  is, '  not  to  come  to  Church,'  or  to 
'speak  against  the  government  established,'  this  is  not  the 
opinion  of  the  Brownists."  *" 

The  bill,  nevertheless,  passed.  And,  though  intended 
for  far  other  purposes,  it  was  overruled  by  God  to  the  promo- 
tion of  his  glory  in  the  establishment  of  those  very  princi- 

*  Hanbury,  p.  34  ;  Neal  Vol.  I.  p.  51G. 


THE  SEPARATISTS  IN  HOLLAND.  S95 

pies  which  ihe  queen  and  her  clergy  were  endeavoring  to 
overthrow,  and  utterly  to  root  out.  It  seems  to  have  been 
the  purpose  of  God  to  make  use  of  this  cruel  law,  to  remove 
from  England  many  of  the  purest-minded  and  best  of  his 
people,  that  in  the  land  of  their  exile  they  might  mature 
and  perfect  that  system  of  church  government  which  in  due 
time  was  to  be  restored,  and  flourish  on  the  soil  of  Britain ; 
and  to  be  transplanted  to  a  distant  land  to  bless  the  teeming 
millions  of  a  new  world. 

The  Separatists  retire  to  Holland^  1592 — 4. 

When  this  bill  passed,  the  prisons  about  London  were 
filled  with  the  Separatists,  as  has  been  narrated  in  the  pre- 
ceding chapter  ;  and  it  is  probable  that  the  gaols  all  over 
the  kingdom  were  in  a  similar  condition.  But  the  prison 
doors  were  soon  thrown  open,  and  the  chains  of  the  prison- 
ers for  ecclesiastical  offences  — i.e.  for  not  worshipping 
God  according  to  law — were  stricken  off*,  on  condition  that 
the  liberated  would  abjure  the  realm,  and  go  into  perpetual 
banishment.  Though  these  men  would  sooner  have  died 
than  have  conformed  to  the  church  of  England,*  yet  were 
they  glad  to  accept  a  release  from  their  rigorous  and  long 
continued  imprisonment,  even  on  such  hard  terms  as  per- 
petual banishment. 

The  Dutch  states,  had  long  been  the  resort  of  the  perse- 
cuted Protestants  of  England  ;  and  thither  the  emancipated 
Separatists  directed  their  steps.  We  are  not  furnished 
with  the  particulars  of  the  removal  of  the  first  exiles.  We 
only  know,  that  both  ministers  and  people  went  together  ; 
and,  there  is  too  much  evidence,  that  they  went  in  deep 

*  Barrowe  and  Greenwood  were  offered  pardons  on  oondilion 
that  they  would  conform  ;.  but  chose  death  as  the  least  of  the  two 
evils. 


296  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

poverty.  The  members  of  the  London  church,  were  pro- 
bably, among  the  first  to  turn  their  backs  upon  their  native 
land.     Johnson,  their  devoted   pastor,  soon  followed  them. 

Francis  Johnson  was  a  well  educated  and  pious  man. 
He  was  "  Fellow  of  Christ's  College,  Cambridge  ;"  where 
he  began  to  suffer  for  his  Puritanism,  as  early  as  1588 — 9. 
Having  publicly  avowed  his  belief  that  every  scriptural 
church  should  have  teaching  and  ruling  elders,  he  was  ex- 
pelled the  University,  and  committed  to  close  prison  with- 
out ball ;  and  thus  probably  remained  for  about  a  year. 
In  1592 — 3  we  hear  of  him,  in  connection  with  the  first 
church  of  the  Separation.  And  soon  after,  we  find  him  a 
fellow-prisoner  with  Greenwood;  "  bothof  whom,  between 
one  and  two  of  the  clock,  after  midnight  *  *  with  bills  and 
staves"  were  "  led  to  the  Counter  [prison]  in  Wood  street." 
Here,  he  probably  remained  until  the  exile  act  gave  him 
the  privilege  of  abjuring  his  native  land,  rather  than  violate 
his  conscience.  We  next  hear  of  him  associated  with  that 
eminently  learned  and  celebrated  man,  Henry  Ainsworth, 
"  the  able  commentator  on  the  Scriptures,"  "  in  close  alli- 
ance" with  the  church  of  English  Separatists,  in  "  a  blind 
lane  at  Amsterdam."  Johnson  was  the  pastor,  and  Ains- 
worth the  teacher,  or  doctor  of  these  conscientious  exiles.* 

Arrived  in  Holland,  these  advocates  of  a  scriptural 
church  polity  were  indeed  no  longer  subjected  to  fines  and 
imprisonment,  dungeons,  irons,  and  death  by  the  hangman  ; 
but  still,  they  were  destined  to  suffer  a  sort  of  persecution 


*  This  distinction  between  the  teaching  officers  of  the  church, 
founded  on  the  words  of  the  apostle,  Eph.  4:  11,  was  early  made, 
and  long  continued  by  the  fathers  of  English  and  American  Con- 
gregationalism. J3oth  ofticers  were  preachers  ;  but  the  pastor's  ap- 
propriate themes  were  p7rtc^<V«/  dutits  ;  while  the  teacher's  were 
doctrinal. 


THE  SEPARATISTS  IN  HOLLAND.  297 

scarcely  less  difficult  to  bear.  The  Dutch  government, 
acting  upon  their  long  established  and  politic  principles  of 
religious  toleration,  received  the  exiles  with  a  measure  of 
kindness  ;  and  allowed  them  to  erect  churches  in  the  prin- 
cipal cities  of  the  states.  But  the  ecclesiastical  powers 
were  less  friendly.  They  looked  with  an  evil  eye  upon 
these  conscientious  refugees.  Their  system  of  church  gov- 
ernment was,  doubtless,  too  liberal  and  democratic  in  its 
character  for  the  ecclesiastics  of  Holland  even.  By  these, 
the  strangers  were  at  first  treated  with  little  kindness.  The 
learned  and  excellent  Ainsvvorth  complained,  that  his 
brethren  and  himself  "  were  loaded  with  reproaches, 
despised,  and  afflicted  by  all  ;  and  almost  consumed  with 
deep  poverty."*  And,  as  an  illustration  of  this,  we  are 
told  that  Ainsworth  himself,  one  of  the  most  profound 
scholars  of  his  day,  was  at  one  time  obliged  to  subsist  on 
"  nine  pence  a  week^  and  some  boiled  roots'  And  for  this 
pittance,  even,  he  seems  to  have  been  reduced  to  the  neces- 
sity of  hiring  himself  as  a  porter  to  a  bookseller.  And  yet, 
this  man  was  capable  of  writing  a  commentary  on  the  Pen- 
tateuch, which  all  the  improvements  of  modern  scholarship 
have  scarcely  superseded. 

The  explanation  of  all  this,  is  found  in  the  fact,  that  the 
Separatists  had  been  slandered,  persecuted,  imprisoned, 
starved,  and  hanged  in  England,  as  enemies  to  the  civil  as 
well  as  ecclesiastical  government  of  the  kingdom.  And, 
not  content  with  persecuting  them  out  of  the  country,  their 
enemies  had  followed  them  with  their  slanders  into  Holland  ; 
representing  them  as  a  discontented,  factious,  fanatical  peo- 
ple, alike  dangerous  to  state  and  church. 


*  Preface    to   his  Treatises,  quoted    by  Toumlin,  in  INeal's  Pur. 
Vol.  II.  p.  G'J. 


298  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

In  addition  to  this ;  the  dissensions  of  Browne's  church  at 
Middleburgh,  some  years  previous, — with  whom  the  exiles 
were  everywhere  confounded, — greatly  added  to  the  preju- 
dices imported  from  England. 

To  counteract  these  slanderous  reports,  and  to  justify 
their  claim  to  the  confidence  of  the  Hollanders,  the  church 
at  Amsterdam  published  in  1598,*  "  the  Confession  of 
Faith  of  certain  English  people,  living  in  the  Low  Countries, 
exiled."  In  this  work  they  explain  the  state  of  things  in 
the  church  of  England,  which  had  forced  them  into  a  Sep- 
aration ;  avouch  their  allegiance  to  the  civil  authority  ;  and 
define  their  doctrine  and  discipline.  In  this  Confession, 
drawn  up  probably  by  Ainsworth  and  Johnson,  the  same 
general  principles  of  church  order  and  discipline  are  pro- 
fessed as  those  contained  in  Clyfton's  Confession,  already 
noticed,  and  inserted  in  the  Appendix.  The  same,  for  sub- 
stance, which  every  Congregational  church  now  embraces. 
Every  article  is  supported  by  a  host  of  Scripture  refer- 
ences, t 

To  add  to  their  sufferings,  dissensions  at  length  arose  in 
the  church  itself;  the  first  occasion  of  which  seems  to  have 
been  a  trifling  one — the  marriage  of  their  pastor,  with  a 
wealthy  and  somewhat  fashionable  widow  ;  but,  it  verified 
the  observation  of  the  apostle, "  How  great  a  matter  a  little 
fire  kindleth."  It  resulted  in  slander  and  abuse,  and 
excommunications;  which  came  nigh  tearing  the  very 
church  in  pieces :  to  the  extravagant  joy  of  their  adversa- 
ries, and  the  great  grief  of  such  as  loved  the  cause  of  truth. 
The  remark  of  John  Robinson  on   the  occasion, — himself 

*  This  seems  to  have  been  republished  in  1002. 

t  Four  of  these  articles,  taken  at  random,  containing  about  forty 
lines  of  matter,  are  supported  by  about  twenty  lines  of  references, 
in  figures. 


THE  SEPARATISTS  IN  HOLLAND.  299 

not  personally  concerned  in  the  quarrel — deserves  to  be 
repeated  :  "  It  is  to  us,"  said  this  good  man,  "just  cause  of 
humiliation  all  the  days  of  our  lives,  that  we  have  given 
and  do  give,  by  our  differences,  such  advantages  to  them 
which  seek  occasion  against  us  to  blaspheme  the  Truth ; 
though  this  may  be  a  just  judgment  of  God  upon  others 
which  seek  offences,  that  seeking  they  may  find  them  to  the 
hardening  of  their  hearts  in  evil.  But  let  men  turn  their 
eyes  which  way  soever  they  will,  they  shall  see  the 
same  scandals.  Look  to  the  first  and  best  churches  planted 
by  the  apostles  themselves,  and  behold  dissensions,  scandal, 
strife,  biting  one  of  another."* 

The  retort  of  Ainsworth,  upon  such  as  made  merchan- 
dize of  the  sins  of  this  people,  is  characteristic  of  the  man  : 
"  How  pregnant  your  persuasions  are,  to  make  us  believe 
that  because  there  are  sins  in  Sion,  there  be  none  in  Baby- 
lon !"t 

Differences  afterwards  arose  upon  the  subject  of  church 
power,  which  were  of  a  more  serious  character.  An  ex- 
planation of  this  controversy  will  come  more  appropriately 
in  a  succeeding  chapter. 

It  must  be  satisfactory  to  every  good  man  to  know,  that 
after  a  few  years,  their  dissensions  were  all  hushed,  and 
peace  and  harmony  restored  ;  and  that  this  oldest  of  the 
churches  of  the  Separation  lived  and  flourished  in  the  land 
to  which  it  had  been  transplanted,  for  more  than  one  hun- 
dred years. 

Another  source  of  suffering  to  this  poor  church,  was 
opened  by  the  slanders  and  falsehoods  of  false  brethren, 
brought  in  unawares  ;  who  apostatized,  and  made  their 
peace  with  the  English  prelates  by  maligning  their  former 

*  Robinson's  Justification  of  Separation,  p  .55,  in  Hanbury,p.  99. 
t  Counterpoison,  p.  51,  quoted  as  above. 


300  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

friends.*  To  one  of  this  sort,  Thomas  White,  the  inde- 
fatigable Francis  Johnson  replied  :  "  Let  himself  remem- 
ber his  own  saying  heretofore,  if  he  will  regard  no  others, 
'That  a  man  that  hath  run  away  from  his  master,  will  sel- 
dom give  him  a  good  report.'  " 

And,  as  if  all  these  things  were  not  enough,  some  of  the 
Dutch  divines  were  not  unwilling  to  lay  new  burdens  upon 
the  poor  exiles.  Francis  Junius,  divinity  reader  at  Leyden, 
entered  the  lists  against  them  :  but  certainly  had  no  occa- 
sion to  be  proud  of  his  encounter  with  the  despised  Sepa- 
ratists.! 

Another  enemy  with  whom  this  church  were  obliged  to 
contend,  on  their  first  going  to  Amsterdam,  was  the  cele- 
brated Arminius,  then  pastor  of  a  church  in  that  city. 

The  reader  need  not  be  told  that  these  various  opponents 
must  have  furnished  abundant  employment  for  the  ready 
writers  of  the  Separation.  Indeed,  their  life  in  Holland 
was  an  almost  incessant  conflict  with  opponents.  They 
had  the  prejudices  of  the  Dutch  to  soften  ;  which  they  at- 
tempted by  publishing  their  confessions,  etc. ;  which  must 
have  cost  them  a  great  deal  of  labor.  They  had  the  Libels 
of  such  men  as  the  apostate  White,  and  Lawne,  and  Fair- 
lambe,  to  answer  ;  which,  though  not  a  difficult,  was  yet  a 

*  It  is  a  valuable,  though  an  undesigned  testimony,  which  one 
of  these  apostates,  Christopher  Lawne,  gives  to  the  general  stead- 
fastness of  the  Separatists,  when  he  says  ;  "  I  am  not  without  hope 
*  *  *  that  some  shall  tht-reby  [i.  e.  by  reading  his  description  of 
Ihe  Brownists]  be  stayed  from  undertaking  that  hard  and  dangerous 
voyage  of*  Separation,'  from  which  so  few  have  ever  returned 

TO     COMMUNION  WITH    THE    CHURCHES    OF  ChRISt"  —  i.    6.       tO    the 

same  Popish  congregations  of  the  English  Church. — Hanbury, 
p.  100. 

t  See  a  particular  account  of  the  controversy  between  Junius 
and  the  church  at  Amsterdam,  in  Hanbury's  8th  Chapter. 


SEPARATISTS  IN  HOLLAND.  301 

vexatious  task.  The  Puritans  set  on  their  champions  ;  as 
Jacob,  and  the  supercilious  and  self-important  Broughton  ; 
and  their  writings  required  labored  replies. 

The  prelates,  through  their  caustic  and  "  pragmatical" 
advocate,  Hall,  attacked  them  ;  and  furnished  work  for 
their  ablest  writers^  and  Smyth,  one  of  their  former  minis- 
ters, becoming  an  Arminian-Baptist,  drew  them  into  that 
controversy.  These  several  opponents,  and  occasions  for 
controversy — not  to  name  others — made  the  lives  of  the 
Separatists  but  little  less  tolerable  in  Holland  than  they  had 
been  in  the  prisons  of  England.  Neveriheless,  they  stood 
erect;  and  contended  manfully  for  what  they  believed  to 
be  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Christ.  And  he  who  reads  with  care 
their  various  controversial  treatises,  will  not  fail  to  learn, 
that  ihe  leaders  of  the  Separation,  the  fathers  of  English 
Congregationalism,  were  men  of  deep  learning,  great  acute- 
ness,  and  profound  acquaintance  with  the  Word  of  God, 
in  its  original,  as  well  as  in  its  English  dress.  They  wrote 
like  men  who  understood  what  they  said,  and  whereof  they 
affirmed.  They  were  men  who  could  "  render  a  reason" 
for  their  faith  and  practice,  and  were  to  be  feared  rather 
than  despised  by  an  opponent.  And  he  who  has  been  ac- 
customed to  look  upon  the  fathers  of  our  denomination  as 
well  meaning,  but  weak  fanatics,  will  find  to  his  surprise, 
on  examination,  that  their  various  writings  abound  with  the 
marks  of  strong  intellects,  and  of  mature  scholarship  ;  and 
that,  on  many  subjects,  they  have  left  but  little  to  be  said 
by  their  modern  followers.  Some  of  these  men  will  be 
found  handling  the  Greek,  the  Hebrew,  and  Syriac  with 
perfect  freedom  ;  and  nothing  will  strike  the  reader  more 
forcibly,  than  the  almost  perfect  acquaintance  which  they 
all  manifest  with  every  part  of  the  Bible  ;  and  the  fre- 
quency and  aptness  of  their  Scriptural  quotations. 
26 


302  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Such  were  the  men  who  were  deemed  unfit  to  live  In 
England  ;  and,  being  driven  out  from  their  native  land,  laid 
the  foundations  of  Congregational  churches  in  different  ci- 
ties of  Holland. 

I  have,  as  yet,  spoken  of  but  one  church  of  English  Sep- 
aratists in  Holland;  namely,  the  church  at  Amsterdam: 
this  was  the  church  which  was  organized  in  Nicholas  Lane, 
London  ;  and  is  frequently  called  in  this  work — the  Lon- 
don church.  This  church  seem  to  have  removed,  in  L593, 
nearly  en  masse  to  Amsterdam  ;  and  so  far  as  we  know, 
was  the  first  established  in  Holland.  But  besides  this,  there 
were  quickly  planted  churches  of  like  character,  composed 
of  English  exiles,  in  the  cities  of  Arkheim,  Middleburgh, 
Rotterdam,  and  Leyden.  The  date  of  these  several  organ- 
izations, or  any  interesting  particulars  of  their  history,  with 
one  exception,  I  cannot,  in  this  volume,  give.  To  the  his- 
tory of  this  exception — I  refer  to  the  church  of  Leyden — 
we  shall  presently  recur,  after  having  disposed  of  some  pre- 
liminary matters  needful  to  a  full  appreciation  of  our  sub- 
sequent history. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

DECLINE  AND  DEATH  OF  ELIZABETH ACCESSION  OF  JAMES  I, 

1603 separatist's     petition HAMPTON     COURT    CON- 
FERENCE. 

Contemporary  with  the  transactions  recorded  in  the  pre- 
ceding chapter,  there  were  important  changes  going  for- 
ward in  England.  As  the  age  and  infirmities  of  Elizabeth 
warned  men  of  her  approaching  dissolution,  the  court  paid 


ACCESSION  OF  JAMES  I.  303 

to  her,  and  the  respect  shown  her,  began  sensibly  to  dimin- 
ish, much  to  her  grief  and  morlification.  Through  her 
whole  reign  she  had  endeavored  to  guard  against  this,  by 
refusing  to  name  her  successor  to  the  throne.  But  all  her 
precautions  could  not  prevent  her  courtiers  and  subjects 
from  turning  their  thoughts  from  the  fading  Queen  to  the 
presumptive  heir  to  the  English  throne. 

One  effect  of  this  state  of  things,  in  which  every  good 
man  must  rejoice,  was,  to  abate  the  violence  of  the  English 
prelates  towards  their  Puritan  brethren.  Their  ecclesias- 
tical lordships  were  not  without  fearful  misgivings  when 
they  turned  their  eyes  towards  Presbyterian  Scotland ; 
from  whence  their  new  king  would  doubtless  come.  Like 
prudent  men,  they  foresaw  the  evil  and  began  to  hide  them- 
selves. And  one  of  their  precautionary  measures  was,  to 
abate  their  persecuting  zeal  against  the  Puritans.  It  was 
the  archbishop's  injunctions,  requiring  subscription  to  all 
the  articles  of  the  Establishment,  rather  than  the  act  of 
Parliament,  which  required  subscription  to  "  the  true  chris- 
tian faith  and  the  doctrine  of  the  sacraments"  only — which 
distressed  the  Puritans ;  and  it  was  therefore  entirely  within 
the  power  of  the  archbishop  and  his  prelates  to  allay  perse- 
cution, by  ceasing  to  enforce  subscription  and  obedience  to 
their  archepiscopal  injunctions. 

While  affairs  were  in  this  posture,  queen  Elizabeth  fell 
into  a  morbid  melancholy,  which  no  efforts  could  remove. 
For  ten  days  she  lay  upon  the  floor,  supported  by  cushions, 
refusing  medicine,  and  taking  but  little  sustenance  ;  and,  at 
length  expired,  March  24th,  1603,  in  the  70th  year  of  her 
age,  and  the  45th  of  her  eventful  reign. 

James  VI,  king  of  Scotland,  was  named  by  Elizabeth  as 
her  successor  ;  or  at  least,  the  queen's  ministers  and  attend- 


304  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ants  chose  to  think  so.*  He  was  accordingly  proclaimed 
forthwith,  king  of  Great  Britain,  under  the  title  of  James  I. 
James  was  the  son  of  the  unfortunate,  if  not  criminal  Mary, 
Queen  of  Scots ;  and  had  an  undoubted  right  to  the  Enj^- 
lish  crown — as  her  heir  and  successor.  He  was  the  first 
of  the  line  of  Stuarts  who  sat  upon  the  throne  of  Great 
Britain.  It  would  have  been  well  for  England  had  he  been 
the  last. 

All  parties  in  the  nation  had  hopes  and  fears  in  view  of 
the  new  reign.  The  king's  mother  had  lived  and  died  a 
Papist,  and  was  counted  as  a  martyr  to  that  faith  ;  and 
James  himself  had  been  baptized  into  the  same  faith,  and 
had  been  pleased  to  call  the  Church  of  Rome  his  "  mother 
church."  These  were  grounds  of  hope  to  the  Popish 
party.  But  James  had  been  educated  among  the  Presby- 
terians.; and  had  openly,  and  repeatedly  professed  his  at- 
tachment to  the  Church  of  Scotland  ;  declaring  it  to  be 
"  the  sincerest  [pw^est]  kirk  in  the  world  ;"  and  twice  had 
he  "  sworn  and  suhscribed''''  the  Presbyterian  confession 
of  faith  ;  and  had  publicly  "  praised  God  that  he  was  born 
to  be  king  of  such  a  church  ;"  declaring  at  the  same  time, 
that  "  the  service  of  the  Church  of  England  was  an  evil 
said  mass  in  English. t  These  circumstances  filled  the  Pu- 
ritans with  high  hopes.  The  Episcopalians  relied  chiefiy 
on  their  easy  access  to  the  monarch,  and  their  fulsome  tlat- 
teries.     They  counted   much,  too,  on  their  ability  to  per- 

*  See  Russell's  Modern  Europe,  Let.  72,  Vol.  I.— particularly 
the  last  note,  where  we  are  told,  that  Elixabeth  was  speechless 
when  the  question  respecting  her  successor  was  put ;  and  that  she 
only  made  signs,  on  which  her  attendants  put  their  own  interpre- 
tation.    Hume  says  nothing  of  this  circumstance. 

t  Calderwood,  in  Prince,  p.  105;  Crookshank's  His.  Church  of 
Scotland.  Introduction. 


ACCESSION  OF  JAMES  I.  305 

suade  the  vain  and  tyrannical  king  that  the  established  reli- 
gion of  the  kingdom  was  the  mainstay  of  the  throne  ;  that 
no  bishop,  no  king,  were  convertible  terms ;  and  this,  to 
the  delight  of  their  souls,  they  found  an  easy  task.*  The 
poor  Separatists  had  least  to  expect,  and  were,  therefore, 
least  disappointed  by  this  man,  whom  Burnet  calls  "  the 
scorn  of  the  age  ;"  and  whom  another  has  characterized  as 
*'  the  prelates  jackal. ''''i 

James  started  on  his  ill-omened  journey  to  London,  April 
5th,  1603.  On  his  way  he  was  presented  with  a  petition 
signed  by  746  Puriian  ministers,  praying  for  "  the  reforma- 
tion of  certain  ceremonies  and  abuses  of  the  church  :"  this 
was  the  far-famed  "  millenary  peiition,'^''X 

The  Separatists  Petition. 

Soon  after  the  king  arrived  in  England,  such  of  the  Sep- 
aratists as  still  remained  in  the  kingdom,  or  had  returned 
from  exile  on  the  death  of  Elizabeth,  addressed  him  in  a 
respectful  and  loyal  manner  ;  not  asking  for  a  legal  estab- 

*  Archbishop  Whitgift  is  said  to  have  manifested  considerable 
anxiety  about  the  approach  of  the  "  Scotch  Mist,"  as  he  termed 
the  Stuart  dynasty.  But  immediately  on  the  death  of  the  queen, 
his  grace  des{>atched  a  messenger  post  haste  to  Scotland,  in  the 
name  of  all  the  bishops  and  clergy  of  the  Establishment,  "  to  re- 
commend the  Church  of  England  to  the  king's  countenance  and 
favor."— Neal,  II.  p.  30. 

t  Hanbury. 

X  I  follow  Prince,  N.  E.  Chro.  p.  103.  The  petition  itself,  in 
its  preamble,  says  it  was  subscribed  '<  to  the  number  of  more  than 
a  thousand.'' — Fuller,  in  Hanbury,  p.  1 17.  Neal  says  :  "  Kot  more 
than  eight  hundred  out  of  ttcenty-five  counties.'' — Vol.  II.  p.  31. 
Hume  says :  "  JVot  less  than  seven  hundred  and  fifty  clergymen 
signed  a  petition  to  the  king,  *  *  *  many  now  seemed  willing  to 
adhere  to  it." — Vol.  III.  p.  276.  Chap.  45. 

26* 


306  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

lishment ;  not  suing  even  for  a  reform  of  manifold  abuses 
in  the  existing  Establishment ;  but  simply  praying,  that 
they  might  be  suffered  "  in  peace  to  walk  in  the  faith  of  the 
Gospel."  This  petition  was  accompanied  by  their  confes- 
sion of  faith,  etc. 

This  address  to  royalty  not  proving  effectual,  they  soon 
after  presented  another;  in  which,  after  distinctly  pointing 
out  the  particulars  in  which  they  differed  from  the  Hierar- 
chy, they  respectfully  say  :  "  Our  humble  suit  therefore  is, 
That  the  ancient  and  only  true  way  of  Christ  being  revived, 
we,  his  unworthy  witnesses  thereof,  your  Majesty's  loyal 
subjects,  may,  by  your  sovereign  authority,  be  protected  so 
as  we  may  be  suffered  peaceably  to  walk  in  that  faith,"  etc. 

Yet  another  address  to  the  throne  was  thought  neces- 
sary,— it  may  be  it  was  required  ;  for  the  petitioners  say  : 
"  We  being  come  to  alleiid  your  majesty^ s  pleasure,''''  etc. 
In  this  document  the  petitioners  defend  and  illustrate,  with 
great  labor  and  ability,  their  former  positions.  This  petition, 
or  address,  occupying  nearly  forty  quarto  pages,  was  after- 
wards,— at  the  request  of  "  an  honorable  person," — con- 
densed into  three  distinct  propositions,  which  embraced  the 
burden  of  the  Separatists'  prayer  to  his  majesty.  The 
substance  of  which  was,  that  the  petitioners  might  enjoy 
toleration  and  protection  in  their  native  land  ;  and,  at  least, 
be  allowed  a  fair  opportunity  to  explain  and  defend  their 
principles  before  they  were  condemned,  and  themselves 
banished.* 

We  have  no  evidence  that  James  thought  that  "  king^ 
crq/i^"  required  any  attention  to  be  paid  to  these  repeated 
solicitations  of  the  poor  Separatists.  If  these  petitions 
ever  reached  the  royal  eye,  they  certainly  never  touched 
the  heart  of  his  kingship. 

*  gee  Hanbury,  Chap,  VI. 


ACCESSION  OF  JAMES  K  307 


Hampton  Court  Conference. 

To  the  millenary  petition,  the  king  thought  it  advisable  to 
pretend  some  regard.  He,  therefore,  appointed  "  a  Con- 
ference," to  be  held  at  Hampton  Court,  between  the  Bishops 
and  the  Puritans.  The  disputants,  on  both  sides,  were  de- 
signated by  the  king  ;  who  showed  his  impartiality.,  and  his 
desire  for  a  fair  discussion  of  the  points  at  issue,  by  nomi- 
nating "  nine  bishops,  and  about  as  many  dignitaries,"  to 
defend  the  Hierarchy  ;  and  four  Puritan  divines  to  defend 
the  petitioners.  The  Conference,  or  rather  the  farce.,  was 
not  public  ;  but  was  carried  on  in  "  the  drawing  room  within 
the  privy  chamber,  at  Hampton  Court."  *  It  began  on  Sat- 
urday, January  14th,  1604,  with  a  private  interview  between 
the  king  and  his  bishops  and  counsellors  ;  in  which  the  pre- 
liminaries of  the  intended  attack  upon  the  Puritans  were  ar- 
ranged. On  Monday,  his  Majesty,  surrounded  by  his  privy 
counsellors  and  nobles,  began  to  exhibit  his  "kingcraft" 
by  brow-beating  and  abusing  the  Puritan  advocates  ;  being 
himself  the  chief  actor  in  the  play. 

The  third  day  of  the  "  farcical  Conference,"  began  with 
another  private  interview  between  the  king  and  his  nobility 
and  the  bishops,  the  Puritans  being  excluded.  In  this  inter* 
view  the  king  defended  and  praised  the  High-Commission 

*  Hampton  Court  is  the  name  of  a  palace  built  by  Cardinal  Wol- 
sey,  in  Hampton,  about  twelve  miles  from  London,  on  the  river 
Thames.  Its  buildings,  gardens,  and  parks,  are  said  to  occupy  an 
area  of  about  four  miles.  The  Cardinal  furnished  it  sumptuously; 
and,  among  other  articles,  with  280  silk  beds  for  the  accommoda- 
tion of  strangers.  It  has  long  been  a  royal  palace.  The  reader 
will  find  a  minute,  and  somewhat  interesting  account  of  Hampton, 
and  its  Court— accompanied  by  beautiful  views  of  the  palace, etc.-:^ 
in  Trotter's  "  Views  in  the  Invirons  of  London," 


308  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Court,  and  the  subscription  to  all  the  Archbishop's  Articles 
and  to  the  Common  Prayer  Book,  and  the  infamous  ex  of- 
ficio oath;  saying,  "  if  any,  after  things  are  well  ordered, 
will  not  be  quiet  and  show  his  obedience,  the  church  were 
better  without  him,  and  he  were  worthy  to  he  hanged^     It 
was  under  the  delirium  of  joy  produced  by  this  most  Chris- 
tian and  kingly  speech,  that  Archbishop  Whitgift,  "  with  a 
sugared  bait,  (which  princes  are  apt  enough  to  swallow,)" 
exclaimed  :    "  Undoubtedly  your   majesty  speaks  by   the 
special  assistance  of  God's  spirit  !"*  and  Dr.  Bancroft,  on 
his  knees  protested  :  "  My  heart  melteth  for  joy,  that  Al- 
mighty God,  of  his  singular  mercy,  has  given  us  such  a  king, 
98  since  Christ's  time  hath  not  been !"     Such  were  the  ful- 
some flatteries  of  these  clerical  dignitaries  ;  these  were  the 
silken  cords  by  which  they  bound  the  king  to  the  Hierarchy. 
After  this  private  acting  had  been  carried  on  for  a  while, 
the  Puritan  divines  were  called  in  to  receive  an  additional 
portion  of  contemptuous  abuse  from  the  lips  of  this  "  Solo- 
mon of  the  age."     They  were  then  dismissed  with  the  fol- 
lowing gentle  words  :  "  If  this  be  all  your  party  hath  to  say^ 
I  will  make  them  conform  themselves,  or  else  I  icill  hurrie 
them  out  of  the  kingdom,  or  else  do  ivorse:  only  hang  them, 
that's  all."  t   Thus  ended  the  Hampton  Court  Conference. 
It  was  designed  to  answer  very  much  the  same  purpose  aa 
was  the  pretended  disputation,  in  the  days  of  Queen  Mary, 
between  the  Oxford  doctors,  and  Archbishop  Cranmer  and 

*  See  Wilson's  Life  and  Reign  of  James  I.  p.  665.  —  Howell, 
who,  I  believe,  was  an.  eye  and  ear  witness  of  the  Conference,  say& 
in  reference  to  this  speech  of  Whitgift :  "  I  wist  not  what  they 
mean  ;  huithe  spirit  icas  rather  foul-mouthed.'" — Lingard,  His.  Eng. 
Vol.  IX.  p.  26.  note. 

t  See  Neal,  II.  Chap.  1.  pp.  35—46;  Prince,  pp.  102— 107  ; 
tlanbury,  Chaps.  6  and  7. 


ACCESSION  OF  JAMES  I.  30^ 

poor  old  Latimer, — so  sick  that  he  could  scarcely  hold  up 
his  head.  Of  the  two,  the  Oxford  Conference  was  the  fairer. 
"  In  the  accounts  that  we  read  of  this  meeting  we  are  alter- 
nately struck  with  wonder  at  the  indecent  and  partial  beha- 
viour of  the  king,  and  the  abject  baseness  of  the  bishops, 
mixed,  according  to  the  custom  of  such  natures,  with  inso- 
lence towards  their  opponents."* 

The  Hampton  Court  Conference,  as  it  was  called,  allowed 
the  king  and  his  bishops  to  say,  that  the  Puritans  had  been 
heard  in  defence  of  their  claims,  and  had  been  vanquished 
in  argument. t  And,  though  the  four  advocates  were  not 
the  chosen  representatives  of  the  Puritan  party,  and  com- 
plained loudly  that  they  were  very  unfairly  used  in  the  Con- 
ference,j:  still  the  whole  body  were  counted  as  a  vanquished 

*  Hallam,  Const.  His.  of  Eng.  Vol.  1.  p.  404. 

t  The  modest  king,  in  giving  an  account  of  this  Conference, 
boasted — ''That  he  had  soundly  peppered  off  the  Puritans;"  and 
that  they  had  so  fled  him  in  argument,  as  would  have  been  dis- 
graceful in  school-boys  even.  Dr.  John  Rej'nolds  was  one  oi'these 
"  peppered  Puritans ;"  styled  by  Calamy,  "  the  wonder  of  the  age 
for  learning  ;"  and  by  Hallam,  "■  nearly,  if  not  altogether,  the  most 
learned  man  in  England." 

X  Hume  shrewdly  remarks  :  "  The  Puritans  were  here  so  un- 
reasonable, as  to  complain  of  a  partial  and  unfair  management  of 
the  dispute  ;  as  if  the  search  after  truth  were,  in  any  degree,  the 
object  of  such  conferences."  *  *  —  Vol.  HI.  p.  278.  Wilson,  de- 
scribing this  Conference,  says,  that  "  They  [the  Puritan  divines] 
disputed  against  the  cross  in  baptism,  the  ring  in  marriage,  the  sur- 
plice, the  oath  ex  officio,  and  other  things  that  stuck  with  them  ; 
which  they  had  hoped  to  get  all  purged  away,  because  the  king 
was  of  a  northern  constitution,  where  no  such  things  were  prac- 
tised :  not  yet  having  felt  the  king's  pulse,  whom  the  southern  air 
of  the  bishops'  breaths  had  so  wrought  upon,  that  he  himself  an^ 
swers  most  of  their  demands ;  sometimes  gently,  applying  leni-. 
tives,  when  he  found  ingenuity,  (for  he  was  learned  and  eloquent^ 
[at]  other  times  corrosives,  telling  them,  these  oppositions,  pro^ 


310  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

enemy  ;  and  were  doomed  to  corresponding  treatment.  And 
what  was  still  worse,  the  poor  Separatists,  who  were  not 
considered  of  sufficient  importance  to  be  allowed  an  advo- 
cate in  this  august  Conference,  or  even  to  be  spectators  of 
its  proceedings,  were  destined  to  share  fully  in  all  the  evils 
with  which  the  non-conformists  were  to  be  visited  ;  and  by 
which  they  were  to  be  "  hurried  out  of  the  kingdom." 

This  conference  was  the  prelude  to  a  royal  proclamation, 
issued  March  5,  1604,  declaring  thai  "  the  same  religion, 
with  Common  Prayer,  and  Episcopal  jurisdiction,  shall  fully 
and  only  be  publicly  exercised,  in  all  respects,  as  in  the  reign 
of  queen  FiVizaheih,  without  hope  of  toleration  of  any  other. ^''^ 

On  the  20ih  of  the  same  month,  the  Convocation  of  the 
clergy,  under  the  presidency  of  the  violent  Bancroft — Whit- 
gift  having  died  on  the  29th  of  February — met,  and  drew 
up  a  book  of  141  Canons ;  which,  with  the  king's  procla- 
mation, completed  the  machinery  for  hurrying  the  Puritans 
out  of  the  kingdom.  The  canons  were  confirmed  by  letters 
patent  from  the  king,  and  became  the  law  of  the  realm 
June  25ih,  1604. 

These  canons  denounced  excommunication  '''' ipso  facto'*'* 
— for  the  very  act — after  this  sort :  "  Whosoever  shall  af- 
firm, that  the  Church  of  England  by  law  established,  is  not 
a  true  and  apostolical  church,  let  him  be  excommunicated 
ipso  facto,  and  not  restored  only  by  the  archbishop,  after 
his  repentance  and  public  revocation  of  his  wicked  error." 
— The  same  punishment  was  denounced  on  whomsoever 
should  affirm — "  that  the  form  of  God's  worship  contained 

ceeded  more  from  stubbornness  in  opinion,  than  tenderness  of  con- 
science :  and  so,  betwixt  his  arguments  and  kingly  authority, 
menaced  them  to  a  conformity,  which  proved  a  way  of  silencing 
them  for  the  present;  and  some  of  them  were  content  to  acquiesce 
for  the  future." — Life  of  James  1.  p.  6G5. 
*  Howes,  in  Prince  ;  Neal,  II.  p,  47, 


ACCESSION  OF  JAMES  I.  311 

in  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer  *  *  *  containeth  any  thing 
in  it  that  is  repugnant  to  the  Scriptures  :" — "  that  any  of  the 
thirty-nine  articles  of  the  church  *  *  are  in  any  part  super- 
stitious or  erroneous,  or  such  as  he  may  not  with  a  good 
conscience  subscribe  to  :" — that  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of 
the  Church  of  England  are  wicked,  anti-christian,  supersti- 
tious, or  such  as,  being  commanded  by  lawful  authority, 
good  men  may  not  with  a  good  conscience  approve,  use,  or, 
as  occasion  requires,  subscribe:"  that  "shall  affirm  the 
government  of  the  Church  of  England,  by  archbishops, 
bishops,  deans,  and  archdeacons,  and  the  rest  that  bear  of- 
fice in  the  same,  is  anti-christian,  or  repugnant  to  the  Word 
of  God  :"  "  that  the  form  or  manner  of  making  and  conse- 
crating bishops,  priests,  or  deacons,  contains  any  thing  re- 
pugnant to  the  Word  of  God"  *  *  : — or,  *'  shall  separate 
from  the  communion  of  the  Church  of  England  *  *  or  com- 
bine together  in  a  new  brotherhood"  *  *  : — or  "  shall  affirm 
that  there  are  within  this  realm,  other  meetings,  assemblies, 
or  congregations  of  the  king's  born  subjects,  than  such  as 
are  established  by  law,  that  may  rightly  challenge  to  them- 
selves the  name  of  true  and  lawful  churches."  *  *  —  For 
each  of  these  several  offences,  excommunication,  with  all 
its  civil  and  ecclesiastical  terrors,  was  pronounced  ;  and  the 
offender  was  not  to  be  restored  "  but  only  by  the  archbishop, 
after  his  repentance  and  public  revocation  of  his  wicked  er- 
ror." * 

Such  were  some  of  the  canons  which  were  forged  by  this 
Convocation  ;  and  ratified,  confirmed,  and  enforced,  by  the 
tyrannical  rulers  of  church  and  state  during  this  entire  reign. 
These  were  the  laws  by  which  multitudes  of  pious  men — 
ministers  and  laymen— were  fined  and  imprisoned  in  their 
native  land,  and  driven  out  of  the  kingdom  to  die  in  foreign 
chmes. 

*  Neal,  II.  pp.  53—62  ;   Hanbury,  pp.  120—123. 


v512  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISBI. 

To  these  infamous  canons  all  the  "  king's  born  subjects" 
were  required  to  conform.  His  majesty  issued  his  procla- 
mation July  6th, 1604,  ordering  "  the  Puritan  ministers  either 
to  conform  before  the  last  of  November,  or  to  dispose  of 
themselves  and  families  some  other  way  ;  as  being  men  un- 
fit, for  their  obstinacy  and  contempt,  to  occupy  such  places."* 

The  weight  of  this  proclamation  and  of  these  canons  fell 
alike  on  the  Separatists  and  the  Puritans.— Of  the  latter,  the 
number  who  were  ejected,  silenced,  or  suspended,  in  the 
course  of  the  ensuing  year,  up  to  Nov.  5th,  1605,  is  esti- 
mated at  from  270  to  400. 

Bancroft,  who  was  now  advanced  to  the  archepiscopal 
chair  vacated  by  VVhitgift's  death,  was  a  fit  instrument  to 
carry  on  this  work  of  persecution.  Few  worse  men  ever 
occupied  Lambeth  palace  than  John  Whitgift:  but  Richard 
Bancroft  was  one  of  those  few.  He  was  a  sycophant  to  his 
majesty  ;  but  a  harsh,  and  violent,  and  unrelenting  persecu- 
tor of  all  Nonconformists.  "A  person,"  says  Wilson,  a 
contemporary  historian, — "  severe  enough  ;  whose  rough- 
ness gained  little  upon  those  that  deserted  the  ceremonies."! 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

JOHN  ROBINSON  AND  HIS  ASSOCIATES. 

It  was  during  the  reign  of  the  besotted,  tyrannical,  hypo- 
'crilical,  and  contemptible  James  I  \\    and  this  fit  associate  in 


*  Prince,  under  the  dale. 

t  History  of  the  Life  and  Reign  of  James  T.  Fol.  p.  685. 

%  I  use  strong  language  ;  but  milder-epithets  would  belie  histo- 
ric truth.  Hallam  says  :  "  James  was  all  his  life  rather  a  hold  Liar 
than  a  good  dissembler."— Const.  His.  p.  404,  note.     ''  The  French 


JOHN  ROBINSON  AND  HIS  ASSOCIATES.  313 

the  government  of  the  church  of  England,  archbishop  Ban- 
croft,—that  John  Robinson  and  a  Separatist  church  In  the 
North  of  England  are  first  brought  before  us.  As  this 
great  and  good  man  and  the  church  of  which  he  became 
pastor  were  instrumental  in  introducing  some  modifications 
of  the  doctrines  and  practice  of  our  denomination,  which 
are  still  retained  among  us ;  and  as  it  is  in  fact  from  this 
source,  as  the  fountain  head — or  rather  reservoir — that 
Congregationalism,  or  Independency,  has  flowed  forth  in 
its  present  purity  to  Great  Britain  and  America — it  would 
be  inexcusable  in  one  attempting  a  history  of  this  denomi- 
nation, not  to  detail  the  history  of  this  excellent  man  and 
his  associates. 

John  Robinson  was  born  in  the  year  1575.  The  place 
of  his  nativity,  his  parentage,  and  his  early  history  are  un- 
known. He  was  educated  at  Cambridge  University.  That 
he  was  loell  educated  no  one  will  doubt  who  reads  any  of 
his  writings.  His  mind,  if  not  of  the  very  highest  order, 
was  of  the  very  hest  order.  It  was  clear  and  discriminating  ; 
well  disciplined,  and  admirably  balanced.  He  seems  to 
have  possessed  the  rare  ability,  to  contemplate  and  investi- 
gate an  absorbing  subject,  without  losing  sight  of  other 
matters  of  interest  and  importance.  His  moral  qualities 
were  of  the  most  interesting  and  lovely  character.  He  was 
a  man  of  great  prudence,  and  modesty,  and  humility  ;  cour- 
teous and  kind  in  his  feelings  and  conduct ;  and  possessed 
of  deep  and  ardent  piety.  His  search  after  truth  seems  to 
have  been  most  careful  and  thorough.  He  was  open  to 
conviction  and  anxious  to  receive  truth  from  any  quarter, 

Ambassadors  Sully  and  La  Boderic,  thought  rnnst  contemptibly  of 
the  King.  His  own  courtiers,  as  their  private  letters  show, dis- 
liked and  derided  him." — Lingard,  and  Hallam,  p.  400,  note.  Bur- 
net calls  him  "  contemptihle." 

27 


314  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

and  ready  to  modify  or  abandon  his  own  opinions  when 
convinced  that  they  were  erroneous. 

With  such  personal,  intellectual,  and  moral  qualities,  we 
need  not  be  surprised  that  John  Robinson  was  highly  es- 
teemed by  good  men  ;  and  was  capable  of  exerting  a  pow- 
erful influence  over  the  minds  and  hearts  of  all  who  knew 
him  and  rightly  estimated  him. 

His  first  settlement  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel  seems  to 
have  been  at  Norwich,  the  capital  of  Norfolk  county  ;* 
where  he  held  a  benefice  in  the  church  of  England.  This 
was  some  time  prior  to  1602  ;  and  if  so,  Mr.  Robinson 
could  not  have  been,  at  that  time,  more  than  twenty-seven 
years  of  age.  He  appears  at  first  to  have  been  a  conforming 
Puritan.  But  being  harassed  by  the  bishops,  and  "  urged 
with  subscription"  to  all  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the 
church  ;t  this  good  man  was  led  into  a  more  careful  investi- 
gation of  the  principles  of  church  polity  ;  and  was  thus  grad- 
ually drawn  further  from  conformity  to  the  hierarchy. 
This  change  of  sentiments  procured  his  suspension  ;  and 
finally,  caused  him  to  be  silenced.  After  this,  probably,  he 
applied  for  the  chaplaincy  of  the  hospital  at  Norwich  ;  but, 
though  "  a  man  worthily  reverenced  of  all  the  city,  for  the 
graces  of  God  in  him,  he  was  refused."!  Nevertheless, 
many  seriously  disposed  persons  resorted  to  his  house  for 
counsel  respecting  their  "  particular  soul  sickness,"  and  for 
prayer.  This  irritated  the  bishop  ;  and  "  certain  citizens 
were  excommunicated  "  for  these  offences  against  the  law* 

*  Belknap,  (Am.  Biog.)  and  after  him  Allen,  (Biog.  Die.)  say; 
"  Near  Yarmouth  ;"  but  Ainsvvorth  and  Hall,  astound  in  Hanbury, 
speak  as  if  in  Norwich  was  Mr.  Robinson's  benefice, — pp.  185,  and 
198,  note  e  ;  and  so  does  Robinson  himself.  One  of  his  works  is 
addressed  to  his  "  Christian  friends  at  Norwich." 

t  See  back  p.  303.  X  Ainsworth. 


JOHN  ROBINSON  AND  HIS    ASSOCIATES.  315 

established  church.  Mr.  Robinson,  finding  that  he  could  not 
rennain  at  peace  in  Norwich,  retired  to  some  part  of  the 
neighboring  county  of  Lincoln.  As  yet,  however,  he  seems 
not  to  have  separated  entirely  from  the  church  of  England. 
It  was  about  this  time  (1602)  that  we  are  first  introduced 
to  those  worthy  men  who  became  the  fellow-pilgrims  of 
Mr.  Robinson  in  a  strange  land.  Governor  Bradford,  in 
his  history  of  Plymouth,  thus  introduces  them :  "  Near  the 
joining  borders  of  Nottinghamshire,  Lincolnshire,  and  York- 
shire, several  religious  people,  finding  their  pious  ministers 
urged  with  subscription,  or  silenced,  and  the  people  greatly 
vexed  with  the  commissary  courts  [i.e.  courts  held  in  the 
name,  and  by  the  authority  of  the  bishops,  in  their  respec- 
tive dioceses,  by  judges  called  Commissaries]  Apparitors, 
and  Pursuivants,  [the  sheriffs  and  constables  of  these  courts,] 
which  they  had  borne  sundry  years  with  much  patience," 
*  * — were,  at  length,  brought  to  "  see  further  into  these 
things  by  the  light  of  the  Word  of  God  ;  how  that,  not  only 
the  ceremonies  were  unlawful,  but  also,  the  lordly  and  ty- 
rannous power  of  the  prelates  ;  who  would,  contrary  to  the 
freedom  of  the  gospel,  load  the  consciences  of  men,  and  by 
their  compulsive  power  make  a  profane  mixture  of  things 
and  persons  in  divine  worship ;  that  their  offices,  courts, 
and  canons,  were  unlawful  ;  being  such  as  have  no  war- 
rant in  the  Word  of  God,  but  the  same  that  were  used  in 
Popery,  and  still  retained.  Upon  which  this  people  shake 
off  this  yoke  of  antichristian  bondage  ;  and,  as  the  Lord's 
free  people,  join  themselves  by  covenant  into  a  church  state, 
to  walk  in  all  her  ways,  made  known,  or  to  be  made  known 
to  them,  according  to  their  best  endeavors,  whatever  it  cost 
them."* 

*  Governor    Bradford's  History,  in  Prince,  Part  I.  pp.  99,  100. 
The  pious  and  excellent  Governor  was  one  of  these  persons  ;  and 


316  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

It  was  among  this  people  that  Mr.  Robinson's  lot  was 
at  length  cast.  They  were  organized  into  a  church  about 
1602  ;  the  year  previous  to  Elizabeth's  death  ;  when  the 
hierarchal  persecution— for  reasons  already  assigned — was 
somewhat  relaxed.  Whether  this  organization  took  place 
before,  or  after  Mr.  Robinson  came  among  them,  does  not 
fully  appear.  From  the  institution  of  the  church  until  1606, 
we  hear  nothing  of  these  good  people.  It  is  most  likely, 
that,  for  a  year  or  two,  they  were  not  much  molested  by 
the  bishops  ;  for  the  prelates  were  in  great  fear  lest  the  ta- 
bles should  be  turned  upon  them,  and  they  should  be  made 
to  drink  of  the  bitter  cup  which  they  had  so  long  been 
forcing  upon  others.* 

When  their  fears  were  fully  allayed  by  the  Hampton 
Court  Conference,  the  ratification  of  the  severe  articles  of 
the  Convocation  of  March,  1604,  and  the  king's  proclama- 
tion, enjoining  entire  conformity  to  these  articles,  and, 
above  all,  by  elevation  to  the  archepiscopal  throne  of  the 
rough-tempered,  and  severe  persecutor  Bancroft,  in  Decem- 
ber—when, I  say,  by  these  means  the  fears  of  the  bish- 
ops were  entirely  allayed,  and  their  persecuting  zeal  set 
with  a  sharp  edge,  then  the  poor  Separatists  on  the  borders 
of  Nottinghamshire,  Lincolnshire,  and  Yorkshire,  were 
made  to  feel  the  full  vengeance  of  these  pretended  "  suc- 
cessors of  the  apostles."  In  the  mean  time,  this  little  com- 
pany of  Separatists  had  so  increased,  as  to  become  "  two 
bands ;"  it  being  deemed  necessary  for   the  better  accom- 

therefore  an  original,  and   most  authentic   witness  of  all  that  he 
relates. 

*  Cambden,  tells  us :  "  Whilst  the  king  began  to  find  fault  with 
some  things  used  in  the  Liturgy,  and  thought  it  convenient  that 
they  should  be  altered,  John  Whitgift,  the  archbishop,  died  for 
grief." — Annals  of  James  I,  Feb.  253th,  1604. 


JOHN  ROBINSON  AND  HIS  ASSOCIATES.  317 

modation  of  the  widely  scattered  believers,  to  organize  a 
second  church  of  the  Separation. 

In  one  of  these  churches,  "  besides  several  of  note,  is 
Mr.  John  Smith  [or  Smyth]  a  man  of  able  gifts,  and  a  good 
preacher,  who  is  chosen  their  pastor.  *  *  In  the  other 
church,  besides  several  worthy  men,  is  Mr.  Richard  Clifton 
[Clyfton],  a  grave  and  reverend  preacher;  and  the  Rev. 
John  Robinson,  who  is  afterwards  their  pastor  for  many 
years,  till  God  takes  him  away  by  death  ;  as  also  Mr.  Wil- 
liam Brewster,  a  reverend  man,  who  afterwards  is  chosen 
Elder,  and  lives  with  them  till  old  age."* 

After  the  settlement  of  the  new  government — civil  and 
ecclesiastical — these  two  churches  were  greatly  harassed 
by  the  bishops.  The  brethren  sought  to  cover  themselves 
by  secretly  meeting  in  private  houses,  and  by  moving  from 
place  to  place  ;  still,  fines  and  imprisonment  were  imposed 
upon  them  with  an  unsparing  hand. 

At  length,  despairing  of  any  peace  in  their  native  land, 
they  began  to  emigrate  to  Holland.  Mr.  Smyth  and  his 
friends  went  over  first,  in  the  year  1606,  and  settled  at 
Amsterdam,  where  the  London  church,  under  Messrs.  John- 
son and  Ainsworth,  had  been  for  several  years  in  exile. 

In  the  fall  of  1607,  Governor  Bradford  tells  us  :  that 
*'  Messrs.  Clifton  and  Robinson's  church  being  extremely 
harassed, some  cast  into  prison, some  beset  in  their  houses, 
some  forced  to  leave  their  farms  and  families,  they  begin 
to  fly  over  to  Holland,  with  their  reverend  pastor,  Mr. 
Clifton." 

It  seems  to  have  been,  however,  with  great  difficulty  that 
they  escaped  from  England.     "  A  large  company  of  them 

*  Bradford,  in  Prince,  p.  114.     I  use  the  new  edition  of  1826', — 
Cummings,  Hilliard  and  Co.  Boston. 

27* 


318  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

had  hired  a  ship  wholly  to  themselves,"  at  Boston,  (Eng.) 
to  carry  them  to  Holland.  The  captain  promised  to  be 
ready  at  a  time  and  place  agreed  upon,  but  disappointed 
them  :  he  afterwards  took  them  on  board  in  the  night,  only 
to  betray  them  to  their  enemies  ;  who  stripped  them  of 
their  property,  treated  their  females  with  indecency,  car- 
ried them  through  the  streets  of  Boston,  to  be  a  laughing 
stock  to  the  inhabitants ;  and  afterwards  arraigned  them 
before  the  magistrates ;  and,  though  chargeable  with  no 
crime,  procured  them  a  month's  imprisonment,  and  seven 
of  them  to  be  bound  over  to  the  next  assize,  or  county 
court.*  Another  attempt  appears  to  have  been  more  suc- 
cessful, and  Mr.  Clifton  and  several  members  of  his 
church  reached  Amstei*dam  in  safety. 

Those  who  first  went  over  with  their  pastor,  connected 
themselves  with  the  English  churches  already  established 
in  Amsterdam.  Mr.  Smyth,  the  pastor  of  one  of  these 
churches,  soon  embraced  the  sentiments  of  the  Dutch  Re- 
monstrants, who  were  Arminians  ;  and  also  imbibed  some 
"peculiar  opinions  on  the  validity  of  the  administration  of 
baptism."t  These  opinions  occasioned  hrs  separation  from 
his  exiled  friends — they  being  generally  staunch  Calvinists 
and  paedo-baptists — and  the  formation  of  a  new  sect, 
which  has  since  been  known  as  The  General  Baptists. 
Mr.  Smyth,  considering  himself  as  unbaptized,  and  know- 
ing of  no  one  qualified,  in  his  judgment,  to  administer  the 
ordinance  ;  and  believing  it  improper  to  engage  in  any 
ministerial  act,  even  so  much  as  public  prayer,  much  less 
the  formation  of  a  church, — until  baptism  had  been  admin- 
istered,— proceeded  first  to  re-baptize  himself,  by  iramer- 

"*  Bradford,  in  Hutchuison's  His.  of  Mass.  Vol.  II. — Appendix 
Mo.  1. 

t  Hanbury,  p.  179. 


JOHN  ROBINSON  AND  HIS  ASSOCIATES.  S19 

sion  ;  and  then  to  immerse  Mr.  Helwisse,  his  associate,  and       / 
several  others,  his  followers.*  -^ 

*  Ivimey  (Flis.  Eng.  Baptists)  and  Toulmin,  in  his  note  on  Neal, 
(His.  Fur.  I.  p.  72,)  speak  of  this  as  a  '■'■  sUhj  charge  *  *  fabricated 
by  Smyth's  enemies;"  and  as  a  '■'■slander'"  upon  his  memory. 
The  following  passage  upon  the  subject,  from  the  candid  and  ex- 
cellent Mr.  Robinson,  must,  1  think,  be  conclusive  on  this  point: 
"  if  the  church  be  gathered  by  baptism,  then  Mr.  Helwisse's 
church  appear  to  all  men  to  be  built  upon  the  sand,  considering 
the  baptism  it  had  and  hath.  Which  was,  as  1  have  heard  from 
THEMSELVES,  on  this  manner;— Mr.  Smyth,  Mr.  Helwisse, 
and  the  rest,  having  utterly  dissolved  and  disclaimed  their  former 
church  state,  and  ministry,  came  together  to  erect  a  new  church 
by  baptism  ;  unto  which,  they  also  ascribed  so  great  virtue  as  that 
they  would  not  so  much  as  pray  together  before  they  had  it.  And, 
after  some  straining  of  courtesy  who  should  begin,  and  that  John 
the  Baptist,  Matt.  3:  14,  misalleged,  Mr.  Smyth  baptized  first 
himself,  and  next  Mr.  Helwisse,  and  so  the  rest,  making  their  par- 
ticular confessions.  Now,  to  let  pass  his  not  sanctifying  a  public 
action  by  public  prayer,  his  taking  '  unto  himself '  that '  honor' 
which  was  not  given  him  either  immediately  from  Christ  or  by  the 
church  ;  his  baptizing  himself,  which  was  more  than  Christ  him- 
self did  ; — 1  demand — Into  what  church  lie  entered  by  baptism  ? 
Or,  entering  by  baptism  into  no  church — How  his  baptism  could 
be  true,  by  their  own  doctrine  ?  Or  Mr.  Smyth's  baptism  not  be- 
ing true  ;  nor  he,  by  it,  entering  into  any  church — How  Mr.  Hel- 
wisse's baptism  could  be  true;  or  into  what  church  he  entered 
by  it.?" 

Smyth  seems  to  have  been  a  man  of  talents  ;  but  according  to 
Neal,  a  man  "  of  an  unsettled  head'' — Vol.  II.  p.  71.  Ainsworth 
says  of  him  :  <'  In  three  sundry  books  he  hath  showed  himself  of 
three  several  religions." — Hanbury,  p.  179.  Robinson  speaks  of 
"  his  instability  and  wantonness  of  wit." — lb.  p.  209.  He  cer- 
tainly was  singular  in  his  opinions  as  well  as  variable. — He  con- 
demned the  use  of  an  English  translation  of  the  Bible  ;  averring 
that  teachers  should  carry  the  original  Hebrew  or  Greek  Testa- 
tament  into  the  public  assembly  "  and  out  of  them  translate  by 
voice."— He  maintained  also,  that  the  money  contributed  by  the 


320  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

These  things,  of  necessity,  laid  the  foundation  for  con- 
troversy and  difficulty  between  the  exiles,  which  materially 
influenced  Mr.  Robinson  and  his  brethren  in  their  subse- 
quent movements. 

Mr.  Clyflon,  on  going  to  Amsterdam,  found  the  ancient 
exiled  church  under  Johnson  and  Ainsworth,  divided  in 
sentiment  upon  the  question,  whether  the  elders  were  au- 
thorized to  act  authoritatively  in  church  matters,  indepen- 
dently of  the  church.  Johnson  maintained  the  affirmative 
of  the  question  :  Clyfton  sided  with  him,  and  became  a 
teacher  in  that  church,  in  the  place  of  Ainsworth,  who  dis- 
sented from  Johnson,  and  finally  separated,  with  his  follow- 
ers, from  the  ancient  church. 

In  the  spring  of  1608,  the  remaining  number  of  Mr. 
Clyfion's  and  Robinson's  church,*  made  arrangements  for 
removing  to  Holland. t     Having  sold  their  estates,  and  put 

impenitent  part  of  the  congregation  should  be  kept  separate  from 
the  gifts  of  the  pious,  and  be  appropriated  to  "common  use." 
—He  also  objected  to  singing,  as  a  part  of  public  worship. 

Neal  says  he  removed  to  the  city  of  Ley,  and  there  died  ;  Han- 
bury  says,  in  IGIO.  But  John  Cotton  says:  "1  understand  by 
such  as  lived  in  those  parts  at  that  time,  .he  lived  at  Amsterdam, 
and  there  died;  and  at  Ley,  in  Holland,  he  never  came. '' — "  Way  of 
Congregational  churches,"  Sec  V.  p.  7.  JNeal  represents  his  con- 
gregation as  being  "  dissolved"  by  his  death.  But,  Ivimey  tells 
us,  that  Hehvisse,  Mr.  Smyth's  associate,  removed  with  tlie  church 
to  London,  soon  after  IGII  ;  and  constituted  the  first  Baptist 
church  m  England.  They  returned  to  England  under  the  impres- 
sion that  flight  in  time  of  persecution  was  sinful. 

*  It  seems  probable  that  Mr.  Robinson  was  chosen  pastor,  of 
the  North  of  England  church,  or  at  least  aciet?  as  such,  immedi- 
ately upon  Mr.  Clyfton's  removal  to  Holland. 

t  Mr.  Robbins,  in  his  Historical  Review,  says,  they  first  con- 
templated removing  to  America — (p.  41)  :  he  does  not,  however, 
give  his  authority  for  the  assertion;  and  I  can  fiud  no  intimation 
of  the  kind  elsewhere.  .  ,._j 


JOHN  ROBINSON   AND  HIS  ASSOCIATES.  321 

themselves  in  readiness  for  their  departure,  they  engaged  a 
Dutch  captain  to  take  them  on  board  from  an  unfrequented 
common,  remote  from  any  house,  between  Hull  and 
Grimsby,  (or  Grimestone,  as  Bradford  calls  it,)  near  the 
mouth  of  the  river  Humber.  The  women  and  children, 
with  all  the  baggage,  were  sent  down  the  river  in  a  bark : 
while  the  men  went  by  land.  They  all  arrived  at  the 
place  of  embarkation  a  day  before  the  ship.  The  sea  was 
rough,  and  the  females  were  sick  :  this  induced  the  marin- 
ers, who  had  charge  of  the  bark,  to  put  into  a  small  creek, 
and  there  await  the  arrival  of  the  Dutch  ship.  The  next 
morning  she  came  ;  but  the  tide  was  out,  and  the  bark  was 
aground  and  could  not  be  got  off.  The  captain  of  the  ves- 
sel seeing  the  men  on  the  beach,  sent  his  boats  and  took 
on  board  a  number  of  them  ;  as  the  sailors  were  about  to 
return  for  a  second  load,  "  the  master  espied  a  great  com- 
pany, both  horse  and  foot,  with  bills,  and  guns,  and  other 
weapons,  for  the  country  was  raised  to  take  them.  The 
Dutchman  seeing  that,  swore  his  country  oath,  '  sacra- 
menti^  and  having  the  wind  fair,  weighed  anchor,  hoisted 
sail  and  away."  The  men  on  land  might  all  have  escaped  ; 
but  a  part  of  them  going  to  the  rescue  of  the  women  and 
children,  were  taken  with  them.  And,  "  pitiful  it  was  to 
see  the  heavy  case  of  these  poor  women  in  distress ;  what 
weeping  and  crying  on  every  side,  some  for  their  husbands, 
that  were  carried  away  in  the  ship ;  others  not  knowing 
what  should  become  of  them  and  their  little  ones,  crying 
for  fear  and  quaking  with  cold."* 

The  captives  were  dragged  from  one  justice  to  another, 
with  the  hope  of  finding  some  one  to  convict  and  imprison 
them.  Finding,  however,  nothing  against  them,  and  not 
knowing  what  to  do  with  such  a  number  of  distressed  and 

*  Bradford,  in  Hutchinson,  ut  sup. 


322  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

helpless  women  and  children,  their  persecutors  at  length 
disnnissed  them,  to  find  a  shelter  as  they  could,  among  their 
friends  ; — homes,  they  had  none. 

In  the  mean  time,  those  on  board  the  ship,  separated 
from  their  friends  and  families,  and  destitute  even  of  a 
change  of  clothing,  endured  a  terrible  storm,  and  narrowly 
escaped  foundering  at  sea.  After  fourteen  days  of  peril 
and  suffering,  they  at  length  reached  Amsterdam  ;  and 
there  found,  among  their  exiled  countrymen  who  had  pre- 
ceded them,  a  resting  place  from  the  raging  elements  and 
from  the  wrath  of  man. 

In  subsequent  attempts  to  escape  from  England,  the  poor 
church  were  more  successful  ;  and  in  the  course  of  the 
year,  the  divided  families,  and  separated  friends  were  per- 
mitted to  embrace  each  other  in  a  foreign  land — but  a  land 
of  religious  liberty. 

Mr.  Robinson,  and  his  college  friend  and  endeared  asso- 
ciate in  the  care  of  the  afflicted  church.  Elder  Brewster, 
were  the  last  to  leave  their  native  shores  ;  "  having  tarried, 
to  help  the  weakest  over  before  them."* 

Arrived  in  Holland,  they  found  the  exiled  churches  in 
Amsterdam  divided  in  sentiment,  as  has  been  already  rela- 
ted. Their  ancient  friend  and  fellow  sufferer,  Smyth,  and 
his  church, — to  whom  the  new  comers  seem  first  to  have 
attached  themselves — were  at  war  with  the  London  church, 
under  Mr.  Johnson  ;  and  were  fast  verging  into  Arminian- 
ism,  and  other  errors  :  and  Mr.  Johnson  and  his  church 
were  far  from  being  perfectly  agreed  among  themselves. 
It  did  not  require  much  time  for  such  men  as  Mr.  Robinson 
and  Mr.  Brewster,  to  foresee,  that,  if  they  and  their  friends 
remained  at  Amsterdam,  it  would  be  well  nigh  impossible 
to  avoid  falling  into  the  contentions  which  were  beginning 


*  Bradford. 


JOHN  ROBINSON  AND  HIS  ASSOCIATES.  323 

lo  show  themselves.  They,  therefore,  wisely  proposed  to 
the  church  to  remove  to  Leyden  ;  a  city  about  nineteen 
miles  from  Amsterdam.  This  arrangement,  though  at- 
tended with  much  inconvenience,  and  "  though  they  knew 
it  would  be  very  much  to  the  prejudice  of  their  outward 
interest,  as  it  proved  to  be  ;  yet,  valuing  peace  and  spirit- 
ual comfort  above  other  riches,"*  the  church  soon  deter- 
mined lo  move.  They  accordingly,  about  a  year  after  their 
arrival  in  Holland,  removed  to  Leyden  ;  between  the  close 
of  the  year  1608  and  April  of  1609. 

Mr.  Clyfton,  and  probably  some  members  of  the 
original  North-of-England  church,  remained  at  Amster- 
dam, where  Mr.  Clyfton  died,  sometime  after  the  year 
1612.t 

*   Bradford,  in  Prince. 

t  Belknap,  and  others  after  him,  have  supposed  that  Clyfton 
(1  follow  the  orthograpliy  of  his  contemporaries)  died  before  the 
arrival  in  Amsterdam  of  Robinson  and  Brewster,  with  the  remnant 
of  their  church.— See  Am.  Biog  Art.  Robinson,  Vol.  II.  p.  157. 
Balies'  Memorial,  Vol.  I.  p.  11. 

These  writers  arc,  however,  evidently  mistaken,  as  appears  from 
the  fact  that  Clyfton  published,  in  1()]2,  a  work  entitled,  '■•  An  Ad- 
vertizement  concerning  a  booit  lately  published  by  Christopher 
Lawne  and  others  against  the  English  exiled  church  at  Amster- 
dam, by  Richard  Clyfton,  Teacher  of  the  same  Church."  Now 
this  was  three  or  four  years,  at  least,  after  Robinson  and  hi.s  church 
had  removed  to  Leyden.  The  church  of  which  Clyfton  was 
teacher  at  Amsterdam,  was  Johnsons  ;  from  which  Ainsworth  and 
his  friends  separated  about  December,  KilO  It  seems  altogether 
likely  that  Clyfton  was  alive  in  1()13  ;  for  we  have  a  work  of  Ains- 
worth's,  under  that  date,  entitled  "  An  Animadversion  to  Mr. 
Richard  Clyfton's  Advertizement,  etc.  Amst.,  A.  D.  1G13."  Clyf- 
ton was  a  man  of  learning  and  talents;  and,  like  all  the  leading  Sep- 
aratists, an  able  controversial  writer.  Ainsworth  once  spoke  of  him 
and  Robinson,  as  "  two  worthy  soldiers  of  Christ.''     To  be  coupled 


324  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

MR.  Robinson's  church  in  leyden. — his  writings. 

Arrived  in  Leyden,  the  members  of  the  exiled  church 
made  the  best  arrangements  in  their  power  to  procure  a 
comfortable  subsistence.  This,  however,  was  no  easy  task. 
Most  of  the  brethren  had  been  trained  to  husbandry  ;  but  in 
a  populous  city, — a  city  of  islands,  intersected  in  every  di- 
rection by  the  different  streams  of  the  Rhone  and  numerous 
canals— there  was,  of  course,  little  scope  for  farmers.  The 
exiles  were, therefore,  obliged  to  devote  themselves  to  trades, 
and  almost  any  lawful  calling  which  the  wants  of  the  city 
encouraged.  William  Bradford,  afterwards  the  governor 
of  Plymouth,  bound  himself  out  as  an  apprentice  to  a  silk- 
dyer.  Elder  Brewster,  after  expending  a  handsome  fortune 
in  the  service  of  this  poor  church,  found  employment  as  a 
school-master  among  the  Dutch  :  and  after  a  while  obtained 
means  to  open  a  printing-office  ;  in  which  were  printed 
many  valuable  books  against  the  hierarchy,  which  could  not 
get  license  in  England.* 

with    John  Robinson  is  sufficient  honor  to  any  man. — See  Han- 
bury,  p.  180,  and  Chap.  14,  passim. 

Elder  William  Brewster,  of  whom  1  intend  to  speak  more  fully 
in  the  sequel  of  the  history  of  this  church,  deserves  a  passing  no- 
tice here.  He  was  a  gentleman  of  education  and  fortiine  ;  both  of 
which  he  devoted  to  the  cause  of  this  poor  church,  over  which  he 
was  made  a  ruler.  His  house  in  England  was  the  place  of  their 
public  meetings;  and  his  table  the  support  of  all  who  came. 
He  suffered  severely  by  the  persecution  and  removals  of  the 
church  ;  and  was  finally  reduced  to  comparative  penury.  He 
was  every  way  a  fit  associate  for  such  a  man  as  John  Robinson. 

*  Mr.  Thatcher  (History  of  Plymouth)  says,  that  a  Latin  copy 


Robinson's  works.  325 

Our  ancestors  were  honest,  and  laborious  in  their  respec- 
tive callings  ;  and  the  Dutch  soon  learned  to  value  them  as 
customers  or  laborers.  By  patient  industry  and  exemplary 
uprightness,  they  were  able  to  secure  a  moderate  but  com- 
fortable living  in  the  city  of  their  exile.  In  the  mean  time 
their  number  gradually  increased  by  emigrations  from  Eng- 
land, until  the  church  contained  three  hundred  communi- 
cants. 

Controversy  with  Hall  and  Bernard  about  Separation,  etc. 

All  this  time  their  devoted  pastor  was  not  idle.  Besides 
preaching  "  thrice  a  week  "  and  "  other  manifold  labors," 
Mr.  Robinson  found  time  to  write  "sundry  books."  The 
first  work  which  came  from  his  pen  after  his  removal  from 
England,  was  written  at  Amsterdam,  near  the  close  of  the 
year  1609  ;  and  entitled  "  An  Answer  to  a  Censorious  Epis- 
tle." This  "  Epistle  "  was  written  by  Joseph  Hall,  after- 
wards bishop  Hall  ;  ycleped  "  the  moderate  bishop  Hall :" 
but,  judging  from  his  reply  to  Robinson, '  moderate '  was  a 
sad  misnomer  when  applied  to  Hall. 

The  leading  design  of  Robinson  in  his  "Answer,  etc." 
seems  to  have  been,  to  state  briefly  the  grounds  on  which 
he  and  his  brethren  had  separated  from  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land. And  this  he  does  with  his  characteristic  clearness; 
with  comprehensive  brevity ;  in  a  style  both  terse  and 
chaste  ;  with  point  and  spirit;  and  yet,  with  courtesy,  and  a 
freedom  from  unchristian  acrimony,  the  more  noticeable, 
because  so  unlike  the  controversial  style  of  that  age.* 

of  Cartwright's  Commentaries  on  the  Book  of  Proverbs,  published 
at  Elder  Brewster's  press,  U)17,  is  now  in  the  possession  of  the  pas- 
tor of  the  first  church  in  Plymouth,  Mass. 

*  The  work  is  entire  in  Hanbury's  Xlth  chapter.  The  scarcity 
and  value  of  the  tract  has  induced  me  to  place  the  whole  of  it  in 
the  Appendix  No.  2. 

28 


826  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Near  the  close  of  the  next  year,  1610,  Mr.  Robinson  pab* 
lished  another  work  of  the  same  general  character  with  that 
just  noticed,  though  much  more  voluminous ;  entitled,  "  A 
Justification  of  Separation  from  the  Church  of  England. 
Against  Mr.  Richard  Bernard,  his  invective,  intituled,  'The 
Separatist's  Schism.'  By  John  Robinson.  Gen.  1:  4.  2  Cor. 
6:14— Anno  D.  1610."  Quarto,  pp.  476— 9. 

Bernard  appears  to  have  been  a  conforming  Puritan,  vicar 
of  Worksop,  a  small  town  near  the  northern  borders  of  Not- 
tinghamshire. This  w^as  the  neighborhood  in  which  the 
churches  of  Mr.  Clyfton  and  Mr.  Smyth  were  originally 
gathered.  Bernard  himself,  at  one  time,  seems  to  have 
been  well  disposed  towards  the  Separation,  and  to  have  ac* 
tually  formed  a  portion  of  his  own  congregation  into  a  sort 
of  Separate  church.  Whether  this  was  a  stroke  of  policy^ 
to  prevent  his  people  from  joining  Mr.  Smyth's  church,  or 
the  result  of  honest  conviction,  is  not  altogether  certain. 
However  this  may  have  been,  it  is  certain  that  Mr.  Bernard 
turned  to  be  the  enemy  of  the  Separatists  ;  and  came  forth, 
as  Ainsworth  says,  "  to  fight  against  the  Truth,  which,  but 
a  while  since,  he  would  needs  seem  to  favor :  but  things 
not  succeeding  according  to  his  expectation,  he  hath  changed 
his  love  into  hatred."  * 

Bernard's  attack  upon  his  former  friends  called  forth 
three  answers  ;  the  fullest  is  that  of  Mr.  Robinson,  now  un- 
der consideration.  The  spirit  of  the  work  is  very  much 
like  the  preceding  ;  the  style  is  somewhat  more  free  and 
diffuse  ;  because  designed  for  a  particular  answer  to  Ber- 
nard, and  a  popular  defence  and  justification  of  himself  and 
friends  separating  from  the  Church  of  England.  Robinson 
seems  to  have  known  his  opponent  well— probably  from 
their  vicinage  in  England — and  he  tells  the  world  some 

*  In  Hanbury,  p.  173,  and  elsewhere,  to  p.  179. 


327 

things  about  him  for  which  Bernard  could  not  have  been 
very  grateful. 

As  this  work  brings  out  very  distinctly  Mr.  Robinson's 
views  of  church  polity,  it  cannot  but  be  acceptable  to  the 
reader  to  have  a  few  passages  from  this  "  father  of  the  In- 
dependents." I  shall  quote  entire  paragraphs,  but  not  al- 
ways in  consecutive  order,  from  different  parts  of  the  vol- 
ume.    The  heading  of  the  paragraphs  is  mine. 

Introduction.— "For  myself,  as  I  could  much  rather  have 
desired  to  have  built  up  myself,  and  that  poor  flock  over 
which  the  Holy  Ghost  hath  set  me,  in  holy  peace, — as  be- 
cometh  the  house  of  God,  wherein  no  sound  of  axe,  or  ham- 
mer, or  other  tool  of  iron,  is  to  be  heard,  1  Kings  6:  7, — 
than  thus  to  enter  the  lists  of  contention  ;  so  being  justly 
called  to  contend  for  the  defence  of  that  truth  upon  which 
this  man,  amongst  others,  lays  violent  hands,  I  will  en- 
deavor in  all  good  conscience,  as  before  God,  so  to  free  the 
same,  as  I  will  be  nothing  less  than  contentious  in  conten- 
tion, but  will  count  it  a  victory  to  be  overcome  in  odious 
provocations  and  reproaches,  both  by  him  and  others.  .  . 
It  were  no  hard  thing  for  our  adversaries  to  oppress  us  with 
the  multitude  of  books  ;  considering  both  how  few  and  how 
feeble  we  are  in  comparison,  besides  other  outward  difficul- 
ties ;  if  the  truth  we  hold,  which  is  stronger  than  all,  did  not 
support  itself." 

Power  of  the  church. — "Touching  '  the  proper  subject' 
of  the  power  of  Christ,  he  tells  Bernard,  Where  the  Papists 
plant  it  in  '  the  Pope  ;'  the  Protestants  in  '  the  Bishops  ;'  the 
Puritans,  as  you  term  the  reformed  churches  and  those  of 
their  mind,  in  '  the  Presbytery ;'  we,  whom  you  name 
'  Brownists,'  put  it  in  '  the  body  of  the  congregation, — the 
multitude  called  the  Church  ;'  odiously  insinuating  against 
us,  that  we  do  exclude  the  Elders  in  the  case  of  government, 


328  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

where,  on  the  contrary,  we  profess  the  Bishops  or  Elders 
to  be  the  only  ordinary  governors  in  the  church,  as  in  all 
other  actions  of  the  church's  communion,  so,  also,  in  the 
censures.  Only  we  may  not  acknowledge  them  for  '  lords 
over  God's  heritage,'  1  Pet.  5:  3,  as  you  would  make  them, 
— '  controlling  all,  but  to  be  controlled  by  none  ;'  much  less 
essential  unto  the  church,  as  though  it  could  not  be  without 
them  ;  least  of  all,  the  church  itself,  as  you  would  expound 
Matt,  xviii.  But  we  hold  the  Eldership,  as  other  ordinances, 
given  unto  the  church  for  her  service  ;  and  so,  the  Elders 
or  Officers,  the  '  servants  and  ministers'  of  the  church, 
2  Cor.  4:  5.  Col.  1:  25  ;  the  wife,  under  Christ  her  hus- 
band." .  . 

State  of  the  question. — "  I  doubt  not  but  Mr.  Bernard 
and  a  thousand  more  ministers  in  the  land  ;  were  they  se- 
cure of  the  magistrate's  sword,  and  might  they  go  on  with 
his  good  license ;  would  wholly  shake  off  their  canonical 
obedience  to  their  Ordinaries,  and  neglect  their  citations  and 
censures,  and  refuse  to  sue  in  their  courts,  for  all  '  the  peace 
of  the  church'  which  they  commend  to  us  for  so  sacred  a 
thing!  Could  they  but  obtain  license  from  the  magistrate 
to  use  the  '  liberty'  which  they  are  persuaded  Christ  hath 
given  them,  they  would  soon  shake  off  the  prelates'  yoke, 
and  draw  no  longer,  under  the  same,  in  spiritual  communion 
with  all  the  profane  in  the  land  ;  but  would  break  those  bonds 
of  iniquity,  as  easily  as  Sampson  did  the  cords  wherewith 
Dalilah  tied  him,  and  give  good  reasons  also,  from  the  Word 
of  God  for  their  so  doing.  And  yet  the  approbation  of  men 
and  angels  makes  the  ways  of  God,  and  works  of  religion, 
never  a  whit  the  more  lawful,  but  only  the  moi^e  free  from 
bodily  danger.  Whereupon  we,  the  weakest  of  all  others, 
have  been  persuaded  to  embrace  this  truth  of  our  Lord  Je- 
sus Christ,  though  in  great  and  manifold  afflictions,  and  to 


Robinson's  works.  329 

hold  out  His  testimony  as  we  do,  though  without  approba- 
tion of  our  sovereign,  knowing  that  as  his  approbation,  in 
such  points  of  God's  worship,  as  his  Word  warranteth  not, 
cannot  make  them  lawful ;  so  neither  can  his  disallowance 
make  unlawful  such  duties  of  religion  as  the  Word  of  God 
approveth  ;  nor  can  he  give  dispensation  to  any  person  to 
forbear  the  same.  Dan.  3:  18.  Acts  5:  29." 

Church  polity. — "  Wise  men,  having  written  of  this  sub- 
ject, have  approved  as  good  and  lawful,  three  kinds  of  poli- 
ties,— monarchical,  where  supreme  authority  is  in  the  hands 
of  one  ;  aristocratical,  when  it  is  in  the  hands  of  some  few 
select  persons  ;  and  democratical,  in  the  whole  body  or 
multitude.  And  all  these  three  forms  have  their  places  in 
the  Church  of  Christ.  In  respect  of  Him,  the  Head,  it  is  a 
monarchy  ;  in  respect  of  the  Eldership,  an  aristocracy  ;  in 
respect  of  the  Body,  a  popular  state." 

Authority  of  church  officers.— "Ministers  and  church- 
governors  have  no  such  authority  tied  to  their  office  [as  civil 
magistrates  have],  but  merely  to  the  Word  of  God.  And 
as  the  People's  obedience  stands  not  in  making  the  Elders 
their  lords,  sovereigns,  and  judges,  but  in  listening  to  their 
godly  counsels  ;  in  following  their  wise  directions  ;  in  re- 
ceiving their  holy  instructions,  exhortations,  consolations, 
and  admonitions  ;  and  in  using  their  faithful  service  and 
ministry  ;  so  neither  stands  the  Elders'  government  in  erect- 
ing any  tribunal-seat  or  throne  of  judgment  over  the  People, 
but  in  exhorting,  instructing,  comforting,  and  improving  them 
by  the  Word  of  God,  1  Tim.  3:  16  ;  and  in  affording  the 
Lord  and  them  their  best  service.  But  here  it  will  be  de^ 
manded  of  me.  If  the  Elders  be  not  set  ov^r  the  Church  for 
her  guidance  and  government }  Yes,  certainly,  as  the 
physician  is  set  over  the  body,  for  his  skill  and  faithfulness 
to  minister  unto  it,  to  whom  the  patient,  yea,  though  his  lord 
28* 


330  HISTOHY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

or  master,  is  to  submit ;  —  the  lawyer  over  his  cause,  to  at- 
tend unto  it ; — the  steward  over  his  family,  even  his  wife  and 
children,  to  make  provision  for  them  ; — yea,  the  watchmen 
over  the  whole  city,  for  the  sake  of  safe-keeping  thereof. 
Such  and  none  other,  is  the  Elders'  or  Bishops'  government." 

Authority  of  the  brethren.—"  In  the  church,  all  and 
every  ordinance  concerns  every  person,  as  a  part  of  their 
communion, — without  the  dispensation  of  necessity,— for 
their  use  and  edification,  1  Cor.  3:  22.  14:  26  ;  all  the  Of- 
ficers to  be  chosen  by  suffrages  and  consent  of  '  the  multi- 
tude,' Acts  1:  15,23,26.  6:  1—3,  5.  14:  23.  15:  2,  3. 
2  Cor.  8:  19,  23.  The  Brethren  are  to  admonish  their 
brethren  of  every  violation  of  God's  commandment ;  and 
so,  in  order,  to  '  tell  the  church,'  Matt.  18:  15,  17,  18,  and 
to  see  the  parties  reformed  :  to  observe  and  to  take  notice 
of  the  Officers'  carriage  and  ministration  ;  and  to  '  say  to 
Archippus,'  as  there  is  need,  '  Take  heed  to  thy  ministry 
that  thou  hast  received  of  the  Lord,  that  thou  fulfil  it,'  Col.  4: 
17 ;  and  if  the  Ministers  will  deal  corruptly,  and  so  perse- 
vere in  the  spirit  of  profaneness,  heresy,  idolatry,  or  athe- 
ism, to  censure,  depose,  reject,  or  avoid  them,  Matt.  18:  17. 
Rom.  16:  17,  18.  Gal.  5:  12.  1  Tim.  6:  3—5.  2  Tim.  3: 
1_5.  Tit.  3:  10,  11;  otherwise  they  betray  their  own  souls, 
and  salvation." 

Old  Test,  and  New  Test,  churches.—"  The  order  of  the 
Old  Testament  was  the  order  of  a  National  Church  ;  but  the 
order  of  the  New  Testament  is  the  order  of  a  Particular 
Church,  wherein  there  needs  no  such  subordination  of  Minis- 
tries as  in  the  other  which  was  National.  The  eye  of  com- 
mon sense  sees  this  difference." 

Women's  rights. — "  Women  are  debarred  by  their  sex^ 
as  from  ordinary  prophesying,  so  from  any  other  dealing 
wherein  they  take  authority  over  the  man,  1  Cor.  14:  34,  35. 


Robinson's  works.  331 

1  Tim.  2:  1 1 ,  12,  yet  not  simply  from  speaking.  Tiiey  may 
make  profession  of  faith  or  confession  of  sin  ;  say  amen  to 
the  church's  prayers  ;  sing  psalms  vocally ;  accuse  a  brother 
of  sin  ;  witness  an  accusation,  or  defend  themselves,  being 
accused  ;  yea,  in  a  case  extraordinary,  namely,  where  no 
man  will,  I  see  not  but  a  woman  may  reprove  the  church, 
rather  than  suffer  it  to  go  on  in  apparent  wickedness,  and 
communicate  with  it  therein.  Now  for  children,  and  such 
as  are  not  of  years  of  discretion,  God  and  nature  dispenseth 
with  them,  as  for  not  communicating  in  the  Lord's  supper 
now,  so  under  the  Law  for  not  otlering  sacrifices,  from  which 
none  of  years  were  exempted  :  neither  is  there  respect  of 
persons  with  God,  in  the  common  duties  of  Christianity." 

Gathering  of  a  church.—"  And  for  the  gathering  of  a 
churchy  1  do  tell  you,  That  in  what  place  soever,  by  what 
means  soever  ;  whether  by  preaching  the  Gospel  by  a  true 
Minister,  by  a  false  Minister,  by  no  Minister, — or  by  read- 
ing, conference,  or  any  other  means  of  publishing  it, — two, 
or  three  Faithful  people  do  arise,  separating  themselves  from 
the  world  into  the  fellowship  of  the  Gospel  and  covenant  of 
Abraham,  they  are  a  Church,  truly  gathered,  though  never 
so  weak  ;  a  house  and  temple  of  God,  ng\\\\y  founded  upon 
the  doctrine  of  the  apostles  and  prophets,  '  Christ  himself 
being  the  corner-stone,'  Eph.  2:  20,  against  which,  '  the 
gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail,*  Matt.  16:  18,  nor  your  dis-. 
graceful  invectives  either." 

Discipline  of  officers. — "  Tf  the  officers  be  the  churchy 
I  would  know,  if  one  of  them  fall  into  scandalous  sin  and 
will  not  be  reclaimed,  what  must  then  be  done  ?  It  will  be 
answered,  that  the  rest  [of  the  officers]  must  censure  him. 
But  what  if  there  be  but  two  in  all,  must  the  one  excommu- 
nicate the  other  ?  The  ruling  Elder,  it  may  be,  the  Pastor  ? 
If  the  rest  of  the  Elders,  being  many,  may  displace  the- 


332  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Pastor  by  their  authority,  they  may  also  place  him,  and  set 
him  up  by  their  authority;  and  so  the  poor  Laity  is  stript 
of  all  liberty  or  power  of  choosing  their  officers  ;  contrary 
to  the  Scriptures." 

Pastor  and  people.— "The  hond  between  the  Minister  and 
people,  is  the  most  strait  and  near  religious  bond  that  may 
be ;  and,  therefore,  not  to  be  entered  but  with  mutual  con- 
sent ...  It  makes  much,  both  for  the  provocation  of  the 
Minister  unto  all  diligence  and  faithfulness  ;  and  also,  for 
his  comfort  in  all  the  trials  and  temptations  which  befall  him 
in  his  ministry,  when  he  considereth  how  the  People  unto 
whom  he  minisicreth  have  committed  that  most  rich  treas- 
ure of  their  souls,  in  the  Lord — yea,  I  may  say,  of  their  very 
'  faith'  and  *  joy,'  to  be  helped  forward  unto  salvation — to 
his  care  and  charge,  by  their  free  and  voluntary  choice  of 
him.  .  .  Acts  20:  28, 29.  John  10:  9, 12,  13.  Acts  6:  1—5. 
2  Cor.  1:24.  It  much  furthers  the  love  of  the  People  to 
the  person  of  their  minister,  and  so,  consequently,  their 
obedience  unto  his  doctrine  and  government,  when  he  is 
such  a  one,  as  tJiemselves^  in  duty  unto  God  and  love  of  their 
own  salvation,  have  made  choice  of;  as,  on  the  contrary,  it 
leaves  them  without  excuse  if  they  either  perfidiously  for- 
sake or  unprofitably  use  such  a  man's  holy  service  and 
ministration.  Lastly,  it  is  agreeable  to  all  equity  and  rea' 
son  that  all  free  persons  and  estates  should  choose  their  own 
servants,  and  them  unto  whom  they  give  wages  and  main- 
tenance for  their  labour  and  service.  But  so  it  is  betwixt 
the  People  and  Ministers  :  the  People  a  free  people,  and  the 
Church  a  free  estate  spiritual,  under  Christ  the  King  ;  the 
Ministers,  the  Church's,  as  Christ's  servants  ;'  and  so  by  the 
Church's  provision  to  '  live,'  and  of  her,  as  '  labourers'  to 
receive  wages.  Rom.  15:  31.  2  Cor,  4:  5,  1  Cor.  9:  14. 
1  Tim.  5:  18." 


Robinson's  works.  333 

Ordination. — "  I  will  here  interpose  some  few  things 
touching  '  succession,'  and  '  ordination'  accordingly.    First, 
then,  we  acknowledge,  that  in  the  right  and  orderly  state  of 
things,  no  ministers  are  to  be  ordained  but  by  ministers,  the 
latter  by  the  former  in  the  churches  where  they  are,  and 
over  which  the  Holy  Ghost  hath  set  them.  .  .  The  Prelates 
and  those  which  level  by  their  line,  do  highly  advance  Or 
dinalion,  and  far  above  the  administration  of  the  word,  sac 
laments,  and  prayer ;  making  it,  and  the  power  of  excom 
munication,thetwo  incommunicable  prerogatives  of  a  J/sAop 
in  their  understanding,  above  an  ordinary  minister.     But 
surely,  herein  these  chief  ministei's  do  not  succeed  the  chief 
ministers,  the  apostles,  except  as  darkness  succeeds  light ; 
and  Antichrist's   confusion,  Christ's   order.      Where    the 
apostles  were  sent  out  by  Christ,  there  was  no  mention  of 
Ordination  ;  their  charge  was  to  '  go,  teach  all  nations,  and 
baptize  them  ;'  and  that  the  apostles  accounted  Preaching 
their  principal  work,  and  after  it,  baptism  and  prayer,  the 
Scriptures  manifest.    Acts  6:  4.    1  Cor.  1:  17.     And  if  Or- 
dination had  been,  in  those  days,  so  prime  a  work,  surely 
Paul  would  rather  have  tarried  in  Crete  himself,  to  have  or- 
dained Elders  there,  and  have  sent  Tilus,  an  inferior  officer, 
about  that  inferior  work  of  Preaching,  than  have  o;one  him- 
self  about  that,  leaving  Titus  for  the  other  !    Tit.  1:  5." 

Controversy  with  Episcopius,  the  Arminian. 

It  was  during  the  years  1612,  1613,  that  the  controversy 
between  the  Arminians  and  Calvinists  raged-  with  the 
greatest  violence  at  Leyden.  Episcopius,  who  had  just  then 
been  made  professor  of  divinity  in  the  university  of  Leyden, 
was  the  champion  of  the  Arminian  party.  Polyander,  an 
older  professor  in  the  university,  headed  the  Calvinistic  par- 
ty.    The  two  professors  divided  the  students  among  them- 


334  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

selves,  and  opposed  each  other  with  great  earnestness  in 
their  respective  lecture-rooms.  Mr.  Robinson,  ever  on  the 
alert  to  understand  all  truth,  found  time,  notwithstanding  his 
pressing  engagements,  to  attend  the  lectures  of  both  pro- 
fessors. These  opportunities,  added  to  his  own  accurate 
knowledge  of  the  Scriptures,  and  his  familiar  acquaintance 
with  the  entire  circle  of  theology,  made  him  a  complete 
master  of  the  whole  controversy.  This,  Polyander  and  his 
friends  were  not  slow  to  discover :  and  when  Episcopiussent 
forth  hisArminian  theses^  with  the  offer  to  defend  them  public- 
ly against  all  opponents,  the  Calvinists  urged  Mr.  Robinson  to 
accept  the  challenge,  and  to  meet  the  Professor  in  a  public 
dispute.  This  proposal  Mr.  Robinson  at  first  declined,  be- 
ing a  modest  man,  and  withal  a  stranger  in  the  city  and  an 
exiled  foreigner :  but  being  urgently  solicited  to  undertake 
the  defence  of  the  truth,  as  preeminently  qualified  for  the 
task,  he  at  last  consented.  Twice  or  thrice  he  met  the 
champion  of  Arminianism  in  a  public  disputation  ;  and,  as 
Governor  Bradford  assures  us,  "  puts  him  to  an  apparent 
non-flas^  in  a  great  and  public  audience  ;"  *  *  "  which,  as 
it  causes  many  to  give  j)raise  to  God  that  the  truth  had  so 
famous  a  victory  ;  so  it  procures  Mr.  Robinson  much  re- 
spect and  honor  from  those  learned  men  and  others."  *- 

The  Boptismal  Controversy. 

In  the  year  1614  we  find  Mr.  Robinson  engaged  in  a  de- 
fence of  the  Separation  against  the  attack  of  Mr.  Helwisse, 
the  Arminian  Baptist,  the  associate  of  Mr.  Smyth  in  his 
new  organization.!  The  character  of  the  work  may  be 
judged  of  by  the  title,  which,  according  to  the  fashion  of  the 
day,  was  pretty  full :  "  Of  Religious  Communion  :  Private 
and  Public.     With  the  silencing  of  the  Clamours  raised  by 

^  In  Prince,  pp.  I2G— 131.  t  See  page  318  of  this  work. 


bobinson's  works.  335 

Mr.  Thomas  Helwisse  against  our  retaining  the  Baptism 
received  in  England  :  and  administering  of  Baptism  unto 
Infants.  As  also  a  Survey  of  the  Confession  of  Faith,  pub- 
lished in  certain  conclusions,  by  the  remainders  of  Mr. 
Smyth's  company :  Prov.  14 :  15.  By  John  Robinson, 
614."  Quarto,  pp.  131.  "  The  remainders  of  Mr.  Smyth's 
Company"  were  Mr.  Helvvisse's  church,  already  noticed, 
who  removed  to  London. 

The  author's  design  led  him  first,  to  define  and  defend 
the  sentiments  of  the  Separation  respecting  private  and 
public  communion  with  churches  not  scripturally  organized. 
In  respect  to  the  former,  he  thus  expresses  himself:  "I 
come  to  the  thing  I  aim  at  in  this  whole  discourse,  which 
is,  That  we  who  profess  a  separation  from  the  English  na- 
tional, provincial,  diocesan,  and  parochial  church  and 
churches,  in  the  whole  formal  state  and  order  thereof,  may, 
notwithstanding,  lawfully  communicate  in  private  prayer, 
and  other  the  like  holy  exercises, — not  performed  in  their 
church  communion,  nor  by  their  church-power  and  minis- 
try,— with  the  godly  amongst  them  ;  though  remaining,  of 
infirmity,  members  of  the  same  church  or  churches ;  ex- 
cept some  other  extraordinary  bar  come  in  the  way  be- 
tween them  and  us." 

He  next  proceeds  to  justify  separation  from  public  com- 
munion with  anti-scriptural  churches  ; — such  a  communion 
as  would  be  a  virtual  recognition  of  them  as  true  churches. 
He  says  :  "  As  we  are,  then,  to  join  ourselves  with  them 
wherein  God  hath  joined  us  ;  so  are  we,  wherein  He  sev- 
ereth  us,  to  sequester  and  sever  ourselves."  What  is  next 
to  be  shown,  accordingly,  is  this,  "  If  the  parish-assem- 
blies, gathered  by  compulsion*  of  all  the  parishioners  pro- 

*  il  must  not  be  lost  sight  of,  that  this  was  really  the  case,  ih 
those  days,  by  the  Statute  of  Uniformity,  1  Eliz.  cap,  2. 


336  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

miscuously,  etc.  be  of  God ;  then  is  our  fellowship  only  of 
persons  sanctified,  at  least  outwardly,  joining  themselves 
by  voluntary  profession  under  the  government  and  ministry 
of  an  eldership  ;  conceiving  prayers  and  thanksgiving  ac- 
cording to  the  church's  present  occasions,  by  the  teachings 
of  the  Spirit^  and  so  administering  the  sacraments  accord- 
ing to  the  simplicity  of  the  Gospel, — not  of  God,  nor  from 
heaven.  If,  on  the  contrary,  ours  be  of  God  and  of  his 
Christ ;  then  is  theirs  of  Antichrist.  .  .  .  Either  the  one  or 
the  other  are  plantings,  which  God  'hath  not  planted,'  and 
'shall  be  rooted  up.'"*  This  proposition  he  proceeds  to 
establish  by  defining  the  scriptural  meaning  of  the  Hebrew 
word  bnp  '  kahal,'  and  the  Greek  fy.xh]ala,  [ecclesia]  called 
by  us  church  ;  that  to  this  true  New  Testament  church,  ap- 
pertain! the  covenant  and  promises,  etc. ;  with  all  holy 
things. I  It  follows,  that  a  church  truly  constituted  "  must 
be  of  such  persons  as  by  and  in  whom  God  will  and  may 
thus  be  worshipped  and  glorified  ;  and  as  are  by  Him,  both 
in  their  persons  and  fellowship,  separated  and  sanctified 
thereunto." 

He  next  passes  to  an  explanation  and  defence  of  their 
church  government.  The  Separatists  were  much  pressed 
by  the  Hierarchy  and  others  with  this  objection  to  their 
government. — That  it  was  popular  or  democralical,  and 
tended  to  the  overthrow  of  the  throne,  as  well  as  the  estab- 
lished Church  of  England.  Our  ancestors  appear  to  have 
been  sincere  monarchists;  and  were,  therefore,  very  soli- 
citous to  rebut  this  objection  to  their  system  of  church 
government.  This,  however,  was  not  an  easy  task ;  for 
it  was  a  fundamental  point  in  the  Separatist's  system,  that 
the  church — i.  e.,  the  brethren  constituting  each  church — 
was  the  depository  of  all  ecclesiastical  authority — was  the 

*  Matt.  15  :   13.  t  Rom.  9:4.  M  Cor.  3  :  21,  22. 


337 

supreme  and  last  appeal  in  all  controversies  ;  or  in  other 
words— That  all  ecclesiastical  power  was  really  in  the 
churches  of  Christ,  as  bodies  politic,  organized  by  the  will, 
and  agreeably  to  the  directions  of  Christ,  revealed  in  the  New 
Testament.  It  coald  not,  therefore,  but  be  a  difficult  task 
for  our  ancestors  to  show  that  their  church  government  was 
not  popular^  and  diametrically  opposed  to  the  prevalent, 
and  oppressive  despotism  under  which  England  then 
groaned.  Mr.  Robinson's  work,  now  before  us,  furnished 
a  good  sample  of  the  method  of  meeting  this  objection  ; 
while  it  explains  pretty  fully  the  ecclesiastical  doctrines 
and  practice  of  our  ancestors. 

He  says :  Because  "  many  loud  clamors  of  *  ana- 
baptistry,'  and  '  popularity,'  are  raised  against  our  gov- 
ernment, I  think  it  meet  briefly  to  insert  a  few  things  touch- 
ing our  profession  and  practice  therein. — The  government 
of  the  church,  then,  as  it  is  taken  most  strictly  for  the 
outward  ordering,  directing,  and  guidance  of  the  same 
church  in  her  affairs, — for  in  a  more  general  sense,  the 
whole  administration  of  Christ's  kingdom,  by  himself  or 
others,  inwardly  or  outwardly,  publicly  or  privately,  may 
be  comprehended  under  the  '  government'  of  the  church, — 
we  place  in  the  Bishops  or  Elders  thereof;  called  by 
Christ  and  the  church,  to  '  feed,'  that  is  to  '  teach'  and 
'  rule'  the  same.*  Which  their  government,  and  the  na- 
ture thereof,  I  will  plainly  lay  down  in  such  particulars  as 
wherein  the  people's  liberty  is  greatest ;  which  are  reduced 
to  these  three  heads.  Exercise  of  prophesying  ;  Choice  of 
officers;  Censuring  of  offenders."  We  cannot  forbear 
presenting  the  particulars  under  those  heads,  so  far  as  they 
illustrate  the  practice  of  our  earliest  predecessors. 

*  Acts  20:  17,20.     1  Tim.  5  :   17. 

29 


338  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Prophesying.  —  "For  the  Exercise  of  Prophesying; 
wherein  men,  though  not  in  office,  have  liberty  to  move 
and  propound  their  '  questions,'*  and  doubts  for  satisfaction 
as  also  having  '  received'  a  '  gift,  to  administer  the  same' 
unto'  edification, exhortation, and  comfort  :'t  as,  then^  Paul 
and  Barnabas  coming '  into  the  synagogue'  of  the  Jews, 
where  they  were  no  officers,  '  the  rulers  of  the  synagogue 
sent  unto  them,  after  the  lecture  of  the  law,'  if  they  had 
'  any  word  of  exhortation  to  the  people,'  to  '  say  on,'|-— 
which  order  the  Jews  also  observe  in  their  synagogues  at 
this  day ; — so  with  us,  the  Officers,  after  their  ordinary 
teaching,  signify  and  exhort  unto  the  use  of  the  like  liberty 
in  that  and  the  other  particulars  formerly  named  :  and  so, 
as  there  is  occasion,  open  and  explain  things  obscure  and 
doubtful;  reprove  things  unsound  and  impertinent;  and  so 
order,  moderate,  and  determine  the  whole  exercise,  by  the 
Word  of  God.  And  in  this,  I  suppose,  it  appears  to  all 
men  that  the  officers  govern." 

Choice  of  Officers. — "  For  the  choice  of  Officers ;  w© 
do  lake  for  our  direction  the  practices  of  the  apostles  and 
apostolical  churches,^  grounded  upon  a  perpetual  equity, 
that  men  should  choose  them  under  Christ,  unto  whose 
faithfulness,  under  the  same  Christ,  and  by  his  appointment, 
they  are  to  commit  themselves  and  their  souls  ;  and  them, 
as  Christ's  and  their  servants,  to  maintain.  In  any  one  of 
which  examples,  the  conscience  of  a  godly  man  is  better 
established,  than  in  all  the  canons  of  Popes  or  Prelates, 
or  other  devices  of  Politic  men  whatsoever,  departing  from 
the  apostolical  simplicity.  It  is  evident,  in  Acts  vi.,  that 
although  the  calling  did  chiefly  depend  upon  '  the  multi- 
tude,' yet  did  the  government  of  the  whole  action  lie  upon 

*  Luke  2:  46.         t  Rom.  12:  6.     1  Fet.  4:  10.     1  Cor.  14:  3. 
X  Acts.  13:  14,  15.         §  Acts  1:  6:  14. 


Robinson's  works.  339 

the  officers.     Conformable  wbereunto,  is  our  practice,  so 
near  as  we  can,  upon  the  like  occasions." 

Censures. — "  Lastly,  For  our  Direction  in  the  public 
use  of  Censures ;  we  propound  to  ourselves  the  rule  of 
Christ,  Matt.  18:  17,  touching  sins  private  in  themselves,  but 
to  be  made  public  by  the  sinner's  refusing  tohear  admonition; 
and  with  it,  the  practice  thereof  by  the  doctrine  of  His  apos- 
tle, 1  Cor.  v.,  about  a  sin  of  public  nature. . .  For  neither 
could  the  apostle,  being  but  one,  be  the  church  or  congrega- 
tion, which  consists  of  '  two'  or  '  three,'  that  is  a  company 
though  never  so  small  '  gathered  together  in  Christ's  name,' 
as  he  expounds  himself.  Matt.  18:  20.  .  .  Answerable  to  the 
course  by  Christ  and  the  apostles,  there  directed,  and  by 
the  Corinthians  observed,  as  appeareth,  2  Cor.  2:  6,  we  de- 
sire our  practice  may  be.  In  which,  sins  scandalous,  if  in 
themselves  of  public  nature,  are  brought  to  the  church  by 
one  of  the  officers;  or  if  private,  and  to  be  made  public  by 
the  sinner's  impenitency,  by  the  Brother  offended  and  his 
Witnesses,  at  the  Officer's  appointment.  Where  the  sin, 
being  manifested,  and  for  fact  orderly  proved  against  the 
offender,  is  by  the  Elders  condemned,  and  rebuked  by  the 
Word  of  God,  and  the  sinner  exhorted  to  repentance,  ac- 
cording to  the  quality  of  the  sin.  In  which  conviction  and 
admonition,  lawfully  and  sufficiently  made,  the  Church 
resteth :  the  Men  manifesting  their  assent  thereunto  by 
some  convenient  word  or  sign,  and  the  women  by  silence. 
And  so,  the  admonition  which  before  was  Christ's  and  the 
Officers'  becomes  the  Church's  ;  following  the  others  as 
their  governors,  and  not  otherwise.  .  .  The  impenitent  sin- 
ner is,  for  his  humbling,  to  be  cut  off*  and  excommunicated 
from  the  fellowship  of  the  church.  The  Elders,  as  gov- 
ernors, going  before  in  decreeing  the  sentence,  and  so  one 
of  them,  upon  the  People's  assent,  as  in  admonition,  pro- 
nouncing it  in  the  Name  of  Christ  and  His  Church." 


840  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Church  Meetings  on  the  Lord's  Day. — "  We  think 
it  lawful  for  the  Brethren  either  doubtful  of  anything 
in  the  Officers'  administrations,  to  propound  their  doubt, 
for  satisfaction  ;  or,  seeing  them  failing  in  any  material 
thing,  to  admonish  them  of  their  duty,  and  that  they 
look  to  their  office  ;*  or  if  need  stand,  to  supply  the  same 
for  the  further  clearino;  of  things.  And  this  whole  proceed- 
ing, we  make  and  use,  ordinarily,  on  the  Lord's  day,  as 
being  properly  the  Lord's  work  ;  a  work  of  Religion,  di- 
rectly respecting  the  soul  and  conscience  ;  and  of  spiritual 
nature,  as  being  an  administration  of  Christ's  '  kingdom,' 
which  is  '  not  of  this  world. 'f  And  this  also,  when  the 
whole  church  is  '  gathered'  together,!  as  which,  it  concern- 
eth  many  ways.  .  .  By  our  weakness,  it  cometh  to  pass  that 
this  comely  order  is  sometimes  interrupted,  and  human 
frailties  intermingle  themselves,  either  by  the  Officers' 
fault  in  not  governing,  or  the  People's  in  not  obeying  as 
they  ought ;  so  as  we  are  at  times  overtaken  with  some 
things  both  disorderly  and  difficult  to  determine  ;  as  it  also 
cometh  to  pass  in  all  assemblies  and  governments  of  and 
by  men  whatsoever:  and  as  in  nature,  etc.  But  things  are 
not  to  be  defined  by  their  abuses." 

"  The  Order  of  our  Government,  then,  being  such  as  I 
have  described  it,  lot  every  indifferent  [impartial]  reader 
judge  whether  or  not,  in  respect  of  outward  order,  it  be 
Popular,  and  wherein  the  People  govern,  as  many  please 
to  reproach  us  and  it.  But  if  men  will  .  .  yet  open  their 
mouths  against  us  for  Popularity  and  Anabaptistry,  we  can 
but  commit  both  ourselves  and  cause  to  God." 

Another  division  of  this  answer  to  Helwisse  takes  up  the 
subject  of  baptism  ;  where  the  reader  will  find  many  of  the 
soundest  and  best  arguments  which  have  ever  been  urged 

*  Golos.  4:  17.  I  John  17:  3o.  %  1  Cor.  5:  4,.  5.. 


Robinson's  works.  341 

in  favor  of  infant  baptism,  and  against  the  practice  of  our 

Baptist  brethren,  in  re-bapiising  such  as  have  received  the 
ordinance  in  infancy. 

Though  this  matter  does  not  fall  so  directly  within  the 
design  of  this  work,  as  the  other  topics  already  introduced, 
I  shall  be  excused  for  inserting  a  paragraph  or  two,  illustra- 
tive of  Mr.  Robinson's  sentiments,  and  his  method  of  treat- 
ing this  subject. 

Re-baptism. — "  I  would  know  of  these  double-washers, 
whether  if  a  man  professing  the  same  faith  with  them  in 
holiness  outwardly,  but  in  hypocrisy,  should  be  baptized  by 
them ;  and  that  afterwards  his  heart  should  strike  him,  and 
God  give  him  true  repentance, — let  it  be  the  person  they 
know  of,  that  fled  from  us  under  admonition  for  sin,  and 
joining  to  and  being  baptized  by  them,  was  presently  after 
by  themselves  found  in  the  same  sin,  and  so  censured, — 
whether,  I  say,  they  would  repeat  their  outward  washing 
formerly  made  as  none,  because  there  was  not  joined  with 
it  the  inward  washing  of  the  Spirit  ?  Or  if  they  think  it 
none,  and  so  the  fcrementioned  person  not  indeed  received 
in  by  baptism,  as  they  speak,  wherefore  did  they  then  ex- 
communicate the  same  person  ?" 

What  is  Baptism  ? — "  If  the  washing  with  water  '  in 
the  name  of  the  Father,  etc.,'  of  a  fit  person  by  a  lawful 
minister,  in  a  lawful  communion  and  manner,  be  true  bap- 
tism, truly  and  lawfully  administered  ;  then,  is  washing 
with  water,  '  in  the  name,  etc.,'  by  an  unlawful  minister, 
of  an  unfit  subject,  and  in  an  unsanctified  communion  and 
manner,  true  baptism  unlawfully  and  falsely  administered. 
The  thing  done  is  the  same  in  both  ;  the  thfference  is  only 
in  the  manner  of  doing  it.  .  .  An  oath  taken  in  earnest,  and 
for  a  thing  lawful,  though  profanely,  bindeth  him  that 
took  it " 

29* 


342  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Infant  Baptism. — Treaiing  expressly  "  Of  the  Baptism 
of  Infants,"  Robinson  nneets  his  opposite  on  the  question  of 
the  "old  and  new  covenants,"  their  nature  and  apphcabil- 
hy  ;  and  having  prepared  his  way,  he  maintains  the  propo- 
sition "  That  the  Infants  of  the  Faithful  are  within  the  com- 
pass of  the  New  Covenant  here  spoken  of."  He  begins 
by  placing  the  opponents  in  this  dilemma:  "  Since  all  chil- 
dren coming  naturally  from  Adam  are  conceived  and  born 
'  in  sin,'*  and  '  by  nature  the  children  of  wrath  ;'t  if  these 
men  believe,  as  they  do  of  all,  that  their  children  so  dying 
shall  be  saved  by  Christ,  then  must  they  have  a  part  in  His 
Testament,  or  in  this  new  covenant.  There  are  not  two 
new  covenants  or  testaments  established  in  the  blood  of 
Christ,  but  one.  And  since  Christ  is  propounded  unto  us 
as  '  the  Saviour'  of  the  'body,'  which  is  his  '  church,'}:  it  is 
more  than  strange  that  these  men  will  have  all  Infants  to 
be  saved,  and  yet  none  of  them  to  be  of  His  '  body,'  or 
'  church  !'  " 

"  We  require  of  thejii  proof,  How  children  are  cast  out 
of  the  church  and  baptism  thereof;  and,  how  the  grace  of 
God  is  so  shortened  by  Christ's  coming  in  the  flesh,  as  to 
cast  out  of  the  church  the  greatest  part  of  the  church  be- 
fore,— the  Infants  of  believers  ?  The  Lord  Jesus  sent  out 
his  apostles  to  'teach'  or  make  disciples  '  all  nations,'  and 
to  '  baptize  them  ;'§  opposing  '  all  nations'  to  that  one  na- 
tion of  the  Jews.  As  if  he  should  have  said  thus, — I  have 
formerly  declared  my  will  to  that  one  nation,  and  circurrv 
cised  it ;  '  go  '  you  now,  and  '  teaeh  all  nations'  and  bap- 
tize them.  Now,  if  Christ's  meaning  had  been,  that  they 
should  not  with  the  parents, — being  made  disciples,  and 
baptized — baptize  the  children ;  as  before  they  had  with 
the    parents, — being  made  disciples,  and  circumcised,— 

*  Psal.  51:  5.  t  Eph,2:  3.  X  E.ph.  5:  23.  Col.  1:  18.  §  Matt 
28:  19. 


Robinson's  works.  343 

circumcised  the  children ;  it  had  been  needful  he  had 
given  them  a  caveat,  to  leave  the  children  of  the  Fait?i- 
ful  out  in  the  world,  though  they  had  formerly  been 
in  the  church  !  If  it  be  objected,  that  they  who  were  taught, 
and  believed,  were  to  be  baptized,  therefore  not  Infants ;  I 
deny  the  consequence.  Which  should  be,  if  it  were  true, — 
and  therefore  not  Infidels^  and  such  as  refuse  the  gospel. 
And  this  is  the  opposition  which  the  Scriptures  make  ;  set- 
ting impenitent  and  unbelieving  persons  against  the  peni- 
tent and  believing,  and  not  children  against  their  parents ; 
which  is  childish  to  imagine  !" 

Plea  for  Prophesying. 

The  next  work  of  Mr.  Robinson's  prolific  pen  bears  date 
1618  ;  and  is  entitled  :  "  The  People's  Plea  for  the  Exer- 
cise of  Prophecy :  against  Mr.  John  Yates,  his  Monopoly. 
By  John  Robinson. — 1  Cor.  14:  1. — Printed  in  the  year 
1618."    16mo.  pp.  77. 

The  object  of  this  little  work  was  to  defend  the  practice 
of  the  Separatists,  in  allowing  the  brethren  of  the  church 
to  express  their  views  in  public  after  the  preacher  had  fin- 
ished his  discourse.  This  practice  was  retained  many 
years  by  the  Leyden  and  Plymouth  church  ;  and,  probably, 
laid  the  foundation  for  the  religious  conference  meetings, 
now  so  common  among  Congregationalists. 

RoMnson^s  "  Apology.'''' 

The  next  year  came  out  Mr.  Robinson's  celebrated 
"  Apology."  It  was  originally  published  in  Latin,  under 
the  following  title  :  "  Apologia  justa  et  necessaria  quorun- 
dam  Christianorum,  aequo  contumeliose  accommuniter  dic- 
torum  '  Brownistarum'  ac  *  Barrowisiarum.'  1619."  12mo. 
pp.  96. 


344  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

This  was  afterwards  translated  and  published  in  Eng- 
lish, under  the  following  title:  "A  just  and  necessary 
Apology  of  certain  Christians,  no  less  contumeliously  than 
commonly  called  '  Brownists'  or  '  Barrowists.'  By  Mr. 
John  Robinson,  Pastor  of  the  English  Church  at  Leyden. 
First  published  in  Latin,  in  his  and  the  church's  name  over 
which  he  was  set ;  after,  translated  into  English  by  himself; 
and  now,  republished  for  the  special  and  common  good  of 
our  own  Countrymen.  Psal.  41:  1.  '  O  blessed  is  he  that 
prudently  attendeth  to  the  poor  weakling.' — Printed  in  the 
year  of  our  Lord  1625"  4to.  pp.  72. 

The  same  general  characteristics  in  style,  and  spirit,  and 
sentiment,  which  have  already  been  remarked  upon  and 
exhibited  in  Mr.  Robinson's  other  productions  are  found  in 
this  "  Apology."  To  enable  the  reader  to  judge  of  the 
sentiments  and  style  of  the  work  a  few  extracts  will  be 
given. 

Visible  Church. — "  There  is  then  had  the  most  full  and 
perfect  communion  of  the  Body  in  the  holy  things  of  God, 
which  is  the  next  and  immediate  end  of  the  '  visible  church,' 
when  all  the  Members  thereof  do  convene  in  some  one 
place.*  And  if  Nature,  as  philosophers  teach,  ever  intend 
that  which  is  most  perfect,  much  more,  Grace.  Now  that 
the  Church,  commonly  called  '  visible,'  is  then  most  truly 
visible  indeed,  when  it  is  assembled  in  one  place  ;  and 
the  communion  thereof  then  most  full  and  intire, 
when  all  its  members,  inspired,  as  it  were,  with  the 
same  presence  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  do,  from  the  same  Pas- 
tor, receive  the  same  provocations  of  Grace  at  the  same 
time  and  in  the  same  place  ; — when  they  all,  by  the  same 
voice, '  banding,  as  it  were,  together,'  do  with  one  accord, 
pour  out  their  prayers  unto  God  ; — when  they  all  '  partici- 

*  Acts  2:  42.  Heb.  10:  25. 


Robinson's  works.  345 

pate'  of  one  and  the  same  holy  bread  ;*— and,  lastly,  when 
they  all  together  consent  unanimously,  either  in  the  choice 
of  the  same  officer,  or  censuring  of  the  same  offender  ; — no 
man,  admitting  a  due  thought  of  things,  can  make  doubt 
of!.. 

"  In  huge  and  vast  flocks,  the  governors  cannot  take 
knowledge  of  the  manners  of  the  people,  private  or  pub- 
lic ;  no,  not  so  much  as  of  their  presence  at  or  absence 
from  the  church  assemblies:  whereby,  what  damage  com- 
eth  unto  true  piety,  any  man  may  easily  conjecture,  and 
miserable  experience  makes  too,  too  manifest  in  the  Re- 
formed Churches.  .  . 

"  There  is,  indeed,  one  church,  and,  as  the  apostle  speak- 
eth,  '  one  body,'  as  '  one  Spirit,  one  hope  of  our  calling, 
one  faith,  one  baptism  ;'t  that  is,  of  one  kind  and  nature  ; 
not  one  in  number,  as  one  ocean.  Neither  was  the  church 
at  Rome,  in  the  apostle's  days,  more  one  with  the  church 
of  Corinth,  than  was  the  baptism  of  Peter  one  with  Paul's 
baptism,  or  than  Peter  and  Paul  were  one.  Neither  was 
Peter  or  Paul  more  one  whole,  intire,  and  perfect  man, — 
consisting  of  the  parts  essential  and  integral, — without  re- 
lation unto  other  men,  than  is  a  particular  congregation, 
rightly  instituted  and  ordered,  a  whole,  intire,  and  perfect 
Church,  immediately^  and  independently^  in  respect  of  other 
churches,  under  Christ !  .  . 

"  Any  citizen  of  Leyden  may  enjoy  certain  privileges  in 
the  city  of  Delph,  by  virtue  of  the  politic  combination  of 
the  United  Provinces  and  cities,  under  the  supreme  heads 
thereof,  the  States  General  ;  which  he  is  bound  also  to 
help  and  assist  with  all  his  power,  if  necessity  require  ;  but 
that  the  ordinary  magistrate  of  Leyden  should  presume  to 
execute  his  public  office  in  the  city  of  Delph,  were  an  inso- 
lent and  unheard-of  usurpation.     The  very  same,  and  not 

*  I  Cor.  10:  17.  t    Eph,  4:  4,5. 


346  HISTORY  OF  Congregationalism. 

otherwise,  is  to  be  said  of  Pastors,  and  particular  churches, 
in  respect  of  that  spiritual  combination  mutual,  under  their 
chief  and  sole  Lord,  Jesus  Christ." 

Church  Officers. — "  Let  us  descend  unto  some  such 
particulars  as  in  which  the  Elders'  office  seemeth  specially 
to  consist.  And  they  are.  The  admitting  of  Members  into  the 
church,  upon  profession  of  faith  made  ;  and,  The  reproving 
and  censuring  of  obstinate  offenders,  whether  sinning  pub- 
licly, or  privately  with  scandal.  As  we  willingly  leave  the 
execution  and  administration  of  these  things  to  the  Elders 
alone,  in  the  setded  and  well-ordered  state  of  the  church, 
so  do  we  deny  plainly  that  they  are  or  can  be  rightly  and 
orderly  done  but  with  the  People's  privity  and  consent !  .  . 
If  Baptism,  the  consequence  of  confession  of  faith  in  them 
baptized,  and  the  badge  of  our  consociation  with  Christ  and 
his  church,  be  to  be  celebrated  publicly  ;  why  is  not  the 
profession  of  faith  proportionably, — although  by  the  form- 
erly baptized  through  a  kind  of  unorderly  anticipation, — 
to  be  made  publicly  also,  and  therewithal  the  consociation 
ecclesiastical,  as  the  former?  The  covenant  privately 
made,  and  the  seal  publicly  annexed,  are  disproportionate." 

The  Church. — "  The  word  '  Ecclesia,'  church,  origin- 
ally Greek,  answering  to  the  Hebrew  ^rp  '  Kahal,'  dolh 
primarily  and  properly  signify  a  convention  of  citizens 
called  from  their  houses  by  the  public  crier,  either  to  hear 
some  public  sentence,  or  charge,  given :  but  translated  to 
religious  use,  [it]  denoteth  an  assembly  of  persons  called 
out  of  the  state  of  corrupt  nature  into  that  of  supernatural 
grace,  by  the  publishing  of  the  Gospel.  Now  the  Elders 
or  Presbyters,  as  such,  are,  and  so  are  said  to  be,  called^  to 
wit,  to  their  office  of  Eldership,  but  called  out  they  are 
not ;  being  themselves  to  call  out  the  church,  and  unto  it 
to  perform  the  crier's  office.     Neither  do  I  think  that  the 


kosinson's  works.  34*7 

name  '  Ecclesia,'  church,  hath  been  used,  by  any  Greek 
author,  before  the  apostles'  times,  or  in  their  days,  or  in  the 
age  after  them,  for  the  assembly  of  sole  governors  in  the 
act  of  their  government,  or  indeed  before  the  same  govern- 
ors had  seized  into  their  own  and  only  hands  the  churches' 
both  name  and  power." 

Elders  Representatives  ?— "  But  you  will  say,  as 
learned  men  used  to  do,  that  these  Elders  sustain  the  per- 
son of  the  whole  multitude,  and  supply  their  room,  for  the 
avoiding  of  confusion  ;  and  so  are  rightly,  as  commonly, 
called  '  The  church-representatives.' — I  answer,  first.  No 
godly,  no,  nor  reasonable  man,  will  affirm,  that  this  repre- 
sentation is  to  be  extended  to  all  the  acts  of  religion,  or  in- 
deed to  others  than  these  which  are  exercised  in  the  gov- 
erning of  the  church.  What  is  it  then  ?  The  Elders,  in 
ruling  and  governing  the  church,  must  represent  the  Pec* 
pie,  and  occupy  their  place.  It  should  seem  then,  that  it 
appertains  unto  the  People, — unto  the  People  primarily  and 
originally,  under  Christ — to  rule  and  govern  the  church, 
that  is,  themselves.  But  who  will  so  say  of  a  government 
not  personal,  but  public,  and  instituted,  as  the  church's  is  ? 
If  the  Elders,  in  their  consistory,  represent  the  church, 
then  whatsoever  they  either  decree  or  do  agreeing  to  the 
Word  of  God,  whether  respecting  faith  or  manners,  that 
also  the  church  decreeth  and  doth  though  absent ;  .  .  this 
being  the  nature  of  representations,  that  what  the  represent- 
ing doth,  within  the  bounds  of  his  commission,  that  the 
represented  doth  primarily,  and  much  more  as  but  using 
the  other  for  his  instrument :  now,  how  dissonant  this  is  to 
true  faith  and  piety  ;  how  consonant  unto  the  papists'  im- 
plicit faith,  no  man  can  be  ignorant ;  and  I  had  rather  wise 
men  should  consider,  than  I  aggravate."  .  . 

Apostolic  Example. — "  Surely,  if  ever  it  did  or  could 


§48  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

appertain  to  any  church  officers  or  governors  whatsoever, 
to  represeni  the  church-assemhhes,  in  elections,  censures, 
and  other  ecclesiastical  judgments  and  occurrences  ;  then, 
without  doubt,  unto  the  apostles  in  an  eminent  and  peculiar 
manner,  especially  living  in  that  rude  and  childish  state  of 
the  church  ;  considering  both  how  superlative  their  office 
was,  and  how  admirable  their  gifts  and  endowments  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  together  with  their  incomparable  both  piety 
and  prudence  ;  by  which,  they  were  both  most  able  and 
willing  to  promote  the  Christian  faith  in  holiness.  And  al- 
though this  constant  and  uniform  both  practice  and  institu- 
tion of  the  apostles  unto  divers  politic  persons^  swelling 
with  pride  of  fleshly  reason,  despising  apostolical  simpli- 
city, and  who,  as  Ireneus  speaks,  would  be  '  rectifiers  of  the 
apostles,'  seem  worthy  of  light  regard  ;  yet  to  us,  who  be- 
lieve with  Theodoret,  that  we  '  ought  to  rest  in  the  apostol- 
ical and  prophetical  demonstrations,  and  who,  with  Tertul- 
lian, '  do  adore  the  fulness  of  the  Scriptures,'  they  seem  of 
singular  weight  and  moment."  .  . 

Democracy.—"  Lest  any  should  take  occasion,  either  by 
the  things  here  spoken  by  us,  or  elsewhere  of  us,  to  con- 
ceive that  we  either  exercise  amongst  ourselves,  or  would 
thrust  upon  others,  any  popular  or  democralical  church- 
government  ;  may  it  please  the  Christian  reader  to  make 
estimate  of  both  our  judgment  and  practice  in  this  point  ac- 
cording to  these  three  declarations  following  :  first.  We  be- 
lieve that  the  external  church-government,  under  Christ  the 
only  Mediator  and  Monarch  thereof,  is  plainly  aristocratical, 
and  to  be  administered  by  some  certain  choice  men  ;  al- 
though the  state,  which  many  unskilfully  confound  with  the 
government,  be,  after  a  sort,  popular  and  democratical. 
By  this  it  appertains  to  the  People  freely  to  vote  in  elections, 
and  judgments  of  the  church  ;  in  respect  of  the  other,  we 


Robinson's  works.  349 

make  account  it  behoves  the  Elders  to  govern  the  People, 
in  their  voting,  in  just  Hberly  given  by  Christ  whatsoever.* 
Let  the  Elders  publicly  propound  and  order  all  things  in 
the  church,  and  so  give  their  sentence  on  them  :  let  them 
reprove  them  that  sin,  convince  the  gainsayers,  comfort  the 
repentant;  and  so  administer  all  things  according  to  the 
prescript  of  God's  Word.  Let  the  People,  of  faith,  give 
their  assent  to  their  Elders'  holy  and  lawful  administration, 
that  so  the  ecclesiastical  elections  and  censures  may  be  rati- 
fied, and  put  into  solemn  execution  by  the  elders.  .  .  Sec- 
ondly, We  doubt  not  but  that  the  Elders  both  lawfully  may, 
and  necessarily  ought,  and  that  by  virtue  of  their  office,  to 
meet  apart,  at  times,  from  the  Body  of  the  church,f  to  de- 
liberate of  such  things  as  concern  her  welfare,  as  for  the 
preventing  of  things  unnecessary,  so  for  the  preparing, — 
according  to  just  order, — of  things  necessary,  so  as  publicly 
and  before  the  People,  that  they  may  be  prosecuted  with 
most  conveniency.  .  .  Thirdly,  By  the  People,  whose  lib- 
erty and  right  in  voting  we  thus  avow  and  stand  for  in  mat- 
ters truly  public  and  ecclesiastical,  we  do  not  understand, — 
as  it  hath  pleased  some  contumeliously  to  upbraid  us, — 
women  and  children  ;  but  only  men,  and  them  grown  and 
of  discretion :  making  account,  that  as  children  by  their 
nonage,  so  women  by  their  sex,  are  debarred  of  the  use  of 
authority  in  the  church. "| 

Marriage. — "  Of  the  celebration  of  Marriage  by  the  Pas- 
tors of  the  Church." — Here,  he  says,  "  We  cannot  assent 
to  the  received  opinion  and  practice  answerable,  in  the  Re- 
formed Churches,  by  which  the  Pastors  thereof  do  cele- 
brate Marriage  publicly,  and  by  virtue  of  their  office." — 

*  1  Cor.  12:  28.  1  Tim.  5   17.  Heb.  13-.  17.  t  Acts  20:  18. 

t  1  Cor.  14:  34,  35.     1  Tim.  2:  12. 

30 


350  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

The  Pastors'  office,  Robinson  adds,  ought  not  "  to  be 
stretched  to  any  other  acts  than  those  of  religion,  and  such 
as  are  peculiar  to  Christians,  amongst  which.  Marriage  com- 
mon to  the  Gentiles  as  well  as  to  them,  hath  no  place."  .  . 
Parable  of  the  Tares. — Descending  to  particularize, 
Robinson  follows  out,  at  some  considerable  length,  the  allu- 
sion  to  "The  church  of  Israel,  and  its  condition  compared 
with  all  the  Christian  churches  ;"  and  then  he  takes  up 
"the  parable  of  the  tares,*  with  which," — he  proceeds, — 
"  as  with  some  thunderbolt,  men  both  learned  and  unlearn- 
ed think  us  beaten  all  {o  fritters  !  But,  first,  these  words, 
'  Let  both  grow  together  till  the  harvest,'t  from  which  alone 
they  do  dispute,  Christ  the  Lord  doth  not  expound  nor  med- 
dle with  in  the  opening  of  the  parable  ;  from  them,  there- 
fore, nothing  firm  can  be  concluded.  Secondly,  Christ 
himself  interprets  '  the  field,'  not  the  church,  but  *  the 
world  ;'J  as  also, '  the  harvest,'  not '  the  end  '  of  the  church, 
but  of  the  world. '§  And  if  by  the  world,  you  understand 
the  church,  you  must  needs  say,  that  Christ  in  the  expound- 
ing of  one  parable  used  another.  Thirdly,  Both  the  text  it- 
self and  reason  of  the  thing  do  plainly  teach,  that  He  doth 
not  speak  at  all  of  excommunication,  which  serves  for  the 
bettering  of '  the  tares  ;'  but  of  their  final  rooting  up  to  perdi- 
tion. ||  Lastly,  Admit  Christ  spake  of  men  apparently  wick- 
ed in  the  church,  either  not  to  be  excommunicated  in  certain 
cases, — which,  with  Gellius  Snecanus,  I  confidently  deny, 
— or  not  excommunicated  as  they  ought  to  be,  and  therefore 
to  be  borne  of  private  members,  the  former  of  which  is  too 
ordinary,  especially  in  churches  enjoying  peace  and  pros- 
perity ;  the  latter  of  which,  the  church  not  being  desperate- 
ly bent  on  evil,  1  easily  assent  to,  yet  doth  this  place  afford 

*  Matt.  xiii.    t  Ver.30.   X  Ver.  38.     §  Ver.  39.     ||  Verses  27— 30. 


Robinson's  works.  351 

no  medicine  for  our  grief:  which  ariseth  not  from  any  cor- 
rupt or  negligent  administration  of  the  church's  discipHne, 
through  the  carelessness  or  want  of  wisdom, — it  may  be 
too  much  wisdom,  such  as  it  is,— of  the  administrators 
thereof,  which  are  personal  things  ;  but  from  the  very  con- 
stitution of  the  church  itself,  and  subject  of  ecclesiastical 
both  government  and  power.  Yea,  1  add  unto  all  these 
things,  that  we,  for  our  parts,  are  willing  in  the  business 
and  controversy  in  hand,  to  appeal  unto  the  tribunal  of  this 
very  parable  ;  and  that,  expounded  by  our  adversaries  them- 
selves ;  and  do  willingly  condescend  that  by  it  alone  judg- 
ment be  given  in  this  matter  !  Our  Saviour  Christ  doth 
plainly  teach  that  this  '  field  '  was  sown  with  '  good  seed  ' 
alone ;  and  that  after,  '  whilst  men  slept,'  the  enemy,  the 
devil,  came  and  '  sowed  tares  amongst  the  wheat.'*  But, 
on  the  contrary,  in  the  sowing  the  English  Jield,  whether 
we  respect  the  national  or  parochial  churches,  together  with 
the  wheat  the  tares,  and  that  exceeding  the  other  infinitely, 
were  at  first  and  yet  are  sown,  and  that  of  purpose,  and  un- 
der most  severe  penalties.  And,  hence,  is  the  first  and 
principal  prejudice  to  our  English  harvest ;  and  from  which 
1  conceive  all  the  rest  to  come.  For,  unto  this  Church,  thus 
clapped  and  clouted  together  of  all  persons  of  all  sons  and 
spirits,  without  difference,  no  man,  equally  and  prudently 
weighing  things,  can  deny  but  that  the  pompous  and  im- 
perious hierarchical  government,  together  with  all  its  acces- 
sories, doth  right  well  accord." 

Conclusion.— He  writes,  in  conclusion,  "And  here  thou 
hast.  Christian  Reader,  the  whole  orderof  our  conversation 
in  the  work  of  Christian  religion  set  down  both  as  briefly 
and  plainly  as  I  could.  .  .  And  if  the  things  which  we  do, 
seem  right  in  thine  eyes,  as  to  us  certainly  they  do,  I  do 

*  Matt.  13:  24,25. 


352  HISTORY  OF  CONGREG^TIONALISBI. 

earnestly  and  by  the  Lord  Jesus  admonish  and  exhort  thy 
godly  mind,  that  thou  wilt  neither  withhold  thy  due  obedi- 
ence from  his  Truth,  nor  just  succor  from  thy  distressed 
brethren.  Neither  do  thou  endure,  that  either  the  smallness 
of  the  number,  or  meanness  of  the  condition,  of  those  that 
profess  it,  should  prejudice,  with  thee,  the  profession  of  the 
Truth,  but  have  in  mind  that  of  TertuUian, '  Do  we  mea- 
sure men's  Faith  by  their  persons,  or  their  persons  by  their 
Faith  ;  as  also,  that  of  Austin,  '  Let  matter  weigh  with  mat- 
ter, and  cause  with  cause,  and  reason  with  reason  ;  but  es- 
pecially that  of  the  Apostle,  '  my  brethren,  have  not  the 
faith  of  our  glorious  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  respect  of  per- 
sons.'*— But  now,  if  it  so  come  to  pass,  which  God  forbid, 
that  the  most  being  either  forestalled  by  prejudice,  or  by 
prosperity  made  secure,  there  be  few  found,  especially  men 
of  learning,  who  will  so  far  vouchsafe  to  stoop  as  to  look 
upon  so  despised  creatures  and  their  cause  ;  this  alone  re- 
maineth.  That  we  turn  our  faces  and  mouths  unto  Thee,  O 
most  powerful  Lord  and  gracious  Father ;  humbly  implor- 
ing help  from  God,  towards  those  who  are,  by  men,  left 
desolate.  There  is  with  Thee  no  '  respect  of  persons ;' 
neither  are  men  less  regarders  of  Thee,  if  regarders  of 
Thee,  for  the  world's  disregarding  them.  They  who  truly 
fear  Thee,  and  work  righteousness,  although  constrained 
to  live,  by  leave,  in  a  Foreign  Land,  exiled  from  country, 
spoiled  of  goods,  destitute  of  friends,  few  in  number  and 
mean  in  condition,  are,  for  all  that,  unto  thee,  O  gracious 
God,  nothing  the  less  acceptable.  Thou  nuroberest  all 
their  wanderings,  and  puttest  their  tears  into  thy  bottles : 
are  they  not  written  in  thy  Book  ?  Towards  Thee,  O 
Lord,  are  our  eyes  ;  confirm  our  hearts,  and  bend  thine  ear, 

*  James  2:  l. 


353 

and  suffer  not  our  feet  to  slip,  or  our  face  to  be  ashamed, 
O  thou  both  just  and  merciful  God. — To  Him,  through 
Christ,  be  praise  for  ever  in  the  church  of  Saints ;  and  to 
thee,  loving  and  Christian  Reader,  grace,  peace,  and  eter- 
nal happiness.  Amen."* 

*  In  the  "Appendix"  to  Mr.  Perkins,  Robinson  defines  a 
Church  to  be  "  A  company  of  faithful  and  holy  people,  with  their 
seed,  called,  by  the  Word  of  God,  into  public  covenant  with  Christ, 
and  amongst  themselves  for  mutual  fellowship  in  the  use  of  all  the 
means  of  God's  glory,  and  their  salvation."  He  shows  "  the  ne- 
cessity and  sufficiency  "  of  five  offices  of  ministry,  to  arise  from 
the  condition,  partly  of  the  souls,  and  partly  of  the  bodies  of  the 
Members  :  "I.  In  the  soul  is  the  faculty  of  understanding  ;  about 
which,  the  '  Teacher  '  is  to  be  exercised  for  information  by  doc- 
trine.— 2.  The  will  and  aflfections,  upon  which  the  '  P.astor  '  is  es- 
pecially to  work  by  exhortation  and  comfort : — 3.  For  that  doctrine 
and  exhortation  without  obedience  are  unprofitable,  the  diligence 
of  the  '  Ruling  Elder  '  is  requisite  for  that  purpose. — 4.  And,  as  the 
Church  consisteth  of  men,  and  they  of  souls  and  bodies,  so  are  the 
'  Deacons,'  out  of  the  Church's  treasure  and  contribution,  to  provide 
for  the  common  uses  of  the  Church  ;  relief  of  the  poor,  and  mainte- 
nance of  the  officers  : — 5.  As  are  the  '  Widows  '  to  affi^rd  unto  the 
sick  and  impotent  in  body,  not  able  otherwise  to  help  themselves, 
their  cheerful  and  comfortable  service." — If  an  Officer  be  found 
unfaithful,  "  He  is,  by  the  Church,  to  be  warned  to  take  heed  to 
his  ministry  he  hath  received,  to  fulfil  it,  Col.  4:  17;  which  if  he 
neglect  to  do,  by  the  same  power  which  set  him  up,  he  is  to  be  put 
down  and  deposed."  Such  as  are  out  of  office,  we  are  told,  are  to 
feed  the  flock  in  the  exercise  of  Prophecy;  which,  it  is  said,  is 
proved  "  By  examples  in  the  Jewish  church,  where  men,  though 
in  no  office  either  in  temple  or  synagogue,  had  liberty  publicly  to 
use  their  gifts,  Luke  2:  42,40,  47.  4:  1(5, 18  .  Acts  8:  4.  11:19—21. 
13:  14 — IC.  18:  24 — 26  :  by  the  commandments  of  Christ  and  his 
apostles,  Luke  9:  1.  10:  1.  Rom.  12:  9.  1  Pet.  4:  10,  11.  1  Cor. 
14:  1  :  by  the  prohibiting  of  women,  not  extraordinarily  inspired, 
to  teach  in  the  Church  ;  herein  liberty  being  given  unto  men,  their 
husbands,  or  others,  1  Tim.  2:  11,  12.     1  Cor.  14:  34,35:  by  the 

30* 


354  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

In  1624,  there  appeared  another  volume,  from  the  pen 
of  Mr.  Robinson,  entitled,  "  A  defence  of  the  doctrine  pro- 
pounded by  the  Synod  of  Dort  against  John  Munler  and 
his  associates,  with  the  refutation  of  their  answer  to  a  writ- 
ing touching  Baptism." 

Practical  and  Devotional  Writings. 

The  next  volume  which  came  from  this  laborious  and 
devout  man,  was  of  a  practical  and  devotional  character. 
Its  title  reads  thus  :  "  Essayes  ;  or  Observations  Divine  and 
Morall  :  Collected  out  of  Holy  Scriptures,  ancient  and  mod- 
erne  writers,  both  Divine  and  Humane.  As  also,  out  of 
the  Great  Volume  of  Men's  Manners  :  Tending  to  the  fur- 
therance of  Knowledge  and  Virtue.  By  John  Robinson. — 
The  second  Edition,  with  two  Tables,  The  one  of  the  Au- 
thors quoted  ;  The  other,  of  the  Matters  contained  in  the 
Observations— Prov.  9:  9,  '  Give  instruction  to  a  wise  man, 
and  he  will  be  wiser,  teach  a  Righteous  man,  and  he  will 
increase  in  learning.' — London,  Printed  by  I.  D.  fori.  Bel- 
lamie,  at  The  Three  Golden  Lyons  in  Cornhill,  neare  the 
Royall  Exchange.   1634.  Small  12mo.  pp.  566."    The  first 

excellent  enfifs  which,  by  this  means,  are  to  be  obtained  ;  as,  The 
glory  of  God  in  the  manifestation  of  his  manifold  graces — That 
the  gifts  of  the  Spirit  in  men  be  not  quenched — For  the  fittmg  and 
trial  of  men  for  the  Ministry — For  the  preserving  pure  of  the  doc- 
trine of  the  Church,  which  is  more  endangered  if  some  one  or  two 
alone  may  only  be  lieard,  and  speak — For  debating  and  satisfying 
of  doubts,  if  any  do  arise — For  the  edifying  of  the  Church,  and  con- 
version of  others."  This  exercise  is  to  be  performed  "  after  the 
public  ministry,  by  the  Teachers,  and  under  their  direction  and 
moderation  ;  whose  duty  it  is,  if  anything  be  obscure,  to  open  it ; 
if  doubtful,  to  clear  it }  if  unsound,  to  refuse  it ;  if  imperfect,  to 
supply  what  is  wanting,  as  they  are  able."  Printed  separately  in 
164*2,  intituled  "  A  Brief  Catechism,  etc."  ]6mo.  pp.  13. 


Robinson's  works.  355 

edition  bears  date  1625,  4to.  pp.  324.     Some  of  the  topics 

discussed  in  this  volume  are  :  "  Of  the  Affections  of  the 
Minde."  "  Of  Religion  and  the  Differences  and  Disputations 
thereabout."  Under  which  he  bewails  the  evil  tendency 
of  Disputations  about  Religion,  "  drawing  the  best  spirits  in- 
to the  head  from  the  heart." — "  Of  Good  Intentions." — 
''  Of  Labour  and  Idlenesse."— "  Of  Afflictions."—"  Of  So- 
ciety and  Friendship." — "  Of  Prayer." — "  Of  Death,"  etc. 
etc.  There  are  sixty -two  Essays  or  Observations  in  the 
volume.  They  all  abound  with  pithy  and  pious  sayings  and 
observations,  and  breathe  throughout  a  lovely  spirit.* 

His  Posthumous  Works. 

The  title  of  Mr.  Robinson's  last  work  reads  thus  :  "  A 
Treatise,  Of  the  Lawfulness  of  Hearing  of  the  Ministers  in 
the  Church  of  England  :  Penned  by  that  Learned  and  Rev- 
erend Divine,  Mr.  John  Robinson,  late  Pastor  to  the  Eng- 
hsh  Church  of  God  in  Leyden.  Printed  according  to  the 
Copy  that  was  found  in  his  Study  after  his  decease  ;  and 
now  published  for  the  common  good.  Together  with  a 
Letter  ;  written  by  the  same  author,  and  approved  by  his 
Church  :  which  foUoweth  after  this  Treatise. — John  7:  24. 
Printed  Anno  1634."  16mo.   Pref.  pp.  xviii.  Treat,  pp.  77. 

There  is  one  advantage  of  these  interminable  title  pages  : 
they  answer  as  prefaces  and  introductions  to  the  works  to 
which  they  are  appended.  Accordingly,  we  may  learn 
from  the  one  before  us,  that  this  '  Treatise  '  was  a  posthu- 
mous  publication.     The   'Letter'    was  addressed   to  Mr. 

*  There  is  a  neatly  printed  copy  of  this  work,  in  a  good  state  of 
preservation,  in  the  Prince  collection.  It  ought  to  he  republished. 
It  is  a  reproach  to  New  England,  that  so  little  is  known  of  the 
writings  of  John  Robinson. 


356  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

Jacob's  Cliurch  in  London,  and  belongs  to  a  period   of  our 
history  which  has  not  yet  been  reviewed. 

This  'Letter'  bears  date  "  5th  April,  1624 ;"  and  the 
'  Treatise'  was  probably  written  some  time  during  the  same 
year.  The  great  object  of  the  Treatise  is  to  show  that,  in 
cases  of  necessity,  the  Separatists  might  lawfully  hear  the 
ministers  of  the  Church  of  England.  The  character  and 
spirit  of  the  work  may  be  judged  of,  by  the  introductory 
and  closing  paragraphs,  which  I  give. 

Introduction. — Robinson  opens  his  Treatise  with  lam- 
entation ;  "accounting  it  a  cross"  that  he  is  "  in  any  par- 
ticular compelled  to  dissent  from"  his  "  christian  coimtry- 
men  ;"  but  confesses  that  he  holds  it  a  "  benefit  and  mat- 
ter of  rejoicing,"  when  he  can,  "  in  any  thing,  with  good 
conscience,  unite  with  them  in  matter,  if  not  in  manner ; 
or,  where  it  may  be,  in  both."  In  "  testimony  of  mine  af- 
fection this  way,"  he  writes,  "  I  have  penned  this  Discourse, 
tending  to  prove  '  The  hearing  of  the  Word  of  God, 
preached  by  the  Ministers  of  the  Church  of  England— able 
to  open  and  apply  the  doctrines  of  Faith  by  that  Church 
professed, — both  lawful,  and,  in  cases,  necessary,  for  all  of 
all  sects  or  sorts  of  Christians,  having  opportunity  and  occa- 
sion of  so  doing;  though  sequestering  themselves  from  all 
communion  with  the  Hierarchial  Order  there  established." 

He  then  proceeds,  after  some  preliminary  matter,  to  the 
following  statement,  and  to  answer  objections  to  the  doc- 
trine advanced. 

Hearing,  NOT  communing.— "Now,  for  Preaching  by  some, 
and  Hearing  by  others, — which  two  always  go  together, — 
they  may  be,  and  oft  are,  performed  without  any  religious 
and  spiritual  communion  at  all  passing  between  the  persons 
preaching  and  hearing.  . .  Hearing  simply,  is  not  appointed 
of  God  to  be  a  mark  and  note  either  of  union  in  the  same 


Robinson's  works.  357 

faith  or  order  amongst  all  that  hear ;  or,  of  difTerence  of 
Christians  from  no  Christians ;  or  of  members  from  no 
members  of  the  church  ;  as  the  sacraments  are  notes  of  both, 
in  the  participants :  the  hearing  of  the  Word  of  God  is  not 
so  enclosed  by  any  hedge  or  ditch,  Divine  or  human,  made 
about  it ;  but  lies  in  common  for  all,  for  the  good  of  all. — 
The  particular  objections  follow." 

Sixteen  objections  are  then  stated  and  answered.  He 
then  concludes  in  the  following  catholic  and  Christian  lan- 
guage : 

Conclusion. — "  To  conclude.  For  myself,  thus  I  believe 
with  my  heart  before  God ;  and  profess  with  my  tongue, 
and  have,  before  the  world  ;  That  I  have  one  and  the  same 
Faith,  Hope,  Spirit,  Baptism,  and  Lord,  which  1  had  in  the 
Church  of  England,  and  none  other.  That,  I  esteem  so 
many  in  that  Church,  of  what  state  or  order  soever,  as  are 
truly  partakers  of  that  Faith, — as  I  account  many  thousands 
to  be, — for  my  Christian  brethren  ;  and  myself  a  fellow- 
member  with  them,  of  that  mystical  Body  of  Christ  scat- 
tered far  and  wide  throughout  the  world.  That,  I  have  al- 
ways, in  spirit  and  affection,  all  Christian  fellowship  and 
communion  with  them  ;  and  am  most  ready,  in  all  outward 
actions  and  exercises  of  religion,  lawful,  and  lawfully  done, 
to  express  the  same.  And  withal.  That  I  am  persuaded  the 
Hearing  of  the  Word  of  God  there  preached,  in  the  manner 
and  upon  the  grounds  form.erly  mentioned,  is  both  lawful 
and,  upon  just  occasion,  necessary  for  me  and  all  true  Chris 
tians  withdrawing  from  that  Hierarchial  Order  of  church 
government  and  ministry,  and  the  appurtenances  thereof 
and  uniting  in  the  Order  .-md  Ordinances  instituted  by  Christ 
the  only  King  and  Lord  of  His  church,  and  by  all  his  disci 
pies  to  be  observed.  And,  lastly.  That,  I  cannot  communi 
cate  with,  or  submit  unto,  the  said  Church-order  and  ordi 


358  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

nances  there  established,  either  in  stale  or  act,  without  being 
condemned  of  my  own  heart ;  and,  therein,  provoking  God, 
who  is  greater  than  my  heart,  to  condemn  me  much  more. 
And,  for  my  failings, — which  may  easily  be  too  many  one 
way  or  other, — of  ignorance  herein ;  and  so  for  all  my  other 
sins,  I  most  humbly  crave  pardon  first  and  most  at  the  hands 
of  God  ;  and  so  of  all  men  whom  therein  I  offend,  or  have 
offended,  any  manner  of  way  ;  even  as  they  desire  and  look 
that  God  should  pardon  their  offences." 

I  have  now  mentioned  all  the  published  works,  of  any 
magnitude,  which  I  have  discovered  of  this  most  estimable 
man.  And  he  who  considers  the  peculiar  situation  of  Mr. 
Robinson  during  the  time  that  all  these  works  were  written, 
and  the  many  and  urgent  duties  growing  out  of  his  pastoral 
relation  to  his  large  church,  will,  I  am  sure,  agree  with  me 
in  saying,  John  Robinson  must  have  been  a  most  remarka- 
ble man  :  a  man  of  extraordinary  talents,  and  learning,  and 
acquisitions,  and  industry,  and  temper;  to  have  written  so 
much  and  so  well,  amidst  so  many  inconveniences,  and  dis- 
couragements, and  disturbing  influences.  He  ivas  a  most 
extraordinary  man.  The  very  enemies  of  the  cause  for 
which  he  spent  his  life  acknowledge  this:  they  confess  him 
to  have  been  "  a  man  of  excellent  parts,  and  the  most 
learned,  polished,  and  modest  spirit  as  ever  separated  from 
the  Church  of  England."* 

I  have  been  thus  particular  in  my  account  of  Mr.  Robin- 
son, because  he  is  the  reputed  father  of  the  Independents  or 
Congregationalists  as  they  now  exist.  Though  he  never 
claimed  this  honor  himself,  and  probably  would  never  have 
allowed  any  one  to  ascribe  it  to  him  ;  and  though,  so  far  as 
the  principles  of  our  denomination  are  concerned,  Mr.  Rob- 
inson was  by  no  means  the  first  discoverer— yet,  he  doubt- 


^  Baylie,  in  Prince,  Fart  li.  p.  17^ 


359 

less  did  more  to  perfect  the  syslem  of  Congregationalism  in 
its  detail,  than  any  one  man  who  has  lived  since  the  days 
of  the  apostles.  It  now  exists,  in  all  essential  particulars, 
as  it  was  found  in  the  Leyden  church  during  the  last  years 
of  their  residence  in  Holland.  I  speak  o^  their  last  years ; 
for  it  must  not  be  overlooked,  that  during  the  residence  of 
this  church  in  Leyden,  some  modifications  were  introduced 
into  their  practice,  if  not  into  their  doctrines.  When  they  left 
England,  Mr.  Robinson  and  his  church  were  rigid  Sepa- 
ratists ;  regarding  the  Church  of  England  as  essentially 
anti-christian  in  its  organization  and  government,  they  not 
only  withdrew  from  it,  but  utterly  rejected  it,  and  denounced 
it;  and  would  not  so  much  as  hear  the  ministers  of  that 
church.  We  have  seen  from  Mr.  Robinson's  writings— 
his  last  work  particularly — that,  in  this  respect  his  views 
had  materially  changed.  I  do  not  discover,  however,  any 
such  considerable  change,  in  his  opinions  generally,  as  some 
writers  have  intimated.  He  appears  to  have  retained  to  the 
last,  the  conviction  that  the  Church  of  England  was  anti- 
christian  in  its  organization,  government,  and  discipline ; 
and  though  he  would  receive  such  members  of  it  as  were 
counted  pious,  to  occasional  communion,  yet  he  seems  never 
to  have  thought  it  right  for  himself  or  his  brethren  to  com- 
mune with  that  church  ;  or  to  do  anything  which  might 
fairly  be  construed  as  an  admission  that  the  English  Hie- 
rarchy was  a  Christian  church — i.  e.  was  organized  upon 
the  principles  of  the  Gospel. 

The  Congregational  doctrine, — that  the  advice  of  sister 
churches  should  be  sought,  in  cases  of  difficulty,— seems 
gradually  to  have  developed  itself  during  the  period  now 
under  review.  Robert  Browne,  indeed,  advocated  this  doc- 
trine ;  but  there  was  no  opportunity  for  its  practical  devel- 
opment until  after  the  removal  of  the  North-of-England 


360  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

church  to  Leyden.  The  difficulty  which  sprang  up  about 
that  time  between  Ainsworth  and  Johnson,  respecting  the 
power  of  the  Elders,  occasioned  an  apphcation  to  the  Ley- 
den church  for  counsel ;  this  they  most  cheerfully  gave; 
and  readily  interposed  their  kind  offices  to  bring  about  a 
reconciliation  between  these  two  excellent  men  and  their 
respective  friends.  Another  instance  has  been  already  al- 
luded to,  when  the  London  church  sent  to  the  churches  at 
Amsterdam  and  Leyden  for  advice.  It  is  proper  to  remark 
here,  that  Mr.  Robinson  was  of  opinion,  that  the  hody  of  a 
church  should  not  be  sent  to  for  advice,  etc. — "  but  some 
chief  persons"  in  it.  His  words  are  :  "  He  conceives  it  not 
orderly  that  the  Bodies  of  Churches  should  be  sent  to  for 
counsel  ;  but  some  chief  persons.  Power  and  authority  is 
in  the  Body  for  elections  and  censures  ;  but  counsel  for  di- 
rection in  all  difficult  cases,  in  some  Few.  In  which  regard 
every  'particular  church'  has  appointed  its  Elderships  for  or- 
dinary counsellors  ;  to  direct  it  and  the  members  thereof,  in  all 
difficulties  ;  with  whom  others  are  also  to  advise  upon  occa- 
sion ;  'specially,  ordinary.  'The  Priest's  lips  should  preserve 
knowledge,  and  they  should  ask  the  law  at  his  mouth ;  for 
he  is  the  messenger  of  the  Lord  of  hosts.  Mai.  2:  7.'  "  * 

These  sentiments  of  Robinson  are  carried  out  in  the 
present  practice  of  our  churches  in  sending  their  pastor 
and  a  lay-brother  to  assist  in  counselling  a  sister  church. 
The  early  Congregationalists  of  New  England  maintained, 
that  the  sending  of  delegates  from  an  invited  church  to  sit 
in  council,  did  not  exclude  the  brethren  of  that  church  from 
attending  the  same  council,  if  they  chose  so  to  do.t  This 
liberty,  however  consistent  with  Congregational  principles, 
is  rarely  if  ever  used  by  our  churches. 

*  Letter  to  the  Lond.  Clih.  Hanbury,  p.  448. 
t  See  Cambridge  Platform,  Chap.  xvi.  §  6. 


THE  LEYDEN  CHURCH.  361 

The  Leyden  Church. 

In  describing  John  Robinson,  I  give  the  essential  pecu- 
liarities of  his  church,  so  far  as  doctrine  and  practice  are 
concerned ;  for  the  most  perfect  harmony  of  views  sub- 
sisted between  them.  And  what  is  still  more  interesting, 
this  mild  and  devout  man  left  the  impress  of  his  moral 
character  upon  his  beloved  congregation.  The  Leyden 
church  and  their  pastor  were  most  firmly  knit  together  in 
Christian  love,  as  well  as  ecclesiastical  sentiment.  The 
pastor  loved  his  church  with  the  sincerest  affection  ;  and 
the  church,  in  turn,  loved  and  reverenced  their  amiable, 
learned,  wise,  and  pious  pastor,  with  the  deepest  devotion. 
"  Such  was  the  reciprocal  love  and  respect  between  him 
and  his  flock,  that  it  might  be  said  of  them  as  it  was  said  of 
the  emperor  Marcus  Aurelius  and  the  people  of  Rome,  that 
it  was  hard  to  judge,  whether  he  delighted  more  in  having 
such  a  people,  or  they  in  having  such  a  pastor."* 

As  this  church  was  the  reservoir  through  which  Congre- 
gationalism has  chiefly  flowed,  by  two  diverging  streams, 
to  the  old  and  new  world,  it  may  be  acceptable  to  my  read- 
ers to  have  presented  in  a  connected  and  condensed  form 
the  leading  principles  and  doctrines  of  the  Leyden  church. 

I.  In  general. — They  believed  the  inspired  Scriptures  to 
be  the  only  rule  of  faith  and  worship  ; — and  that  every  man 
had  the  right  to  judge  for  himself  what  the  Scriptures 
taught,  and  to  worship  God  agreeably  to  his  convictions  of 
truth  and  duty. 

II.  In  their  doctrinal  creed. — They  were  strictly  Calvin- 
istic  ;  agreeing  substantially  with  the  church  of  England, 
and  all  the  Reformed  churches  of  that  period. 

*  Quoted  by  Belknap,  Am.  Biog.  Art.  Robinson. 

31 


362  HISTORY  OF.  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

JII.  In  ecclesiastical  matters.  —  They  believed  "That 
no  church  ought  to  consist  of  more  nnembers  than  can  con- 
veniently watch  over  one  another,  and  usually  naeet  and 
worship  in  one  congregation." — That  visible  behevers  only 
should  compose  a  church. — That  such  persons  are  to  be 
embodied  into  a  church  "  by  some  certain  contract  or  cov- 
enant."— "  That  being  embodied  they  have  a  right  of  choos- 
ing all  their  officers." — That  these  are,  "  in  some  respects, 
oi  three  sorts.,  in  others  but  two.,  viz.  (1.)  Pastors  or  Teach' 
ing-Elders.,  who  have  the  power  of  overseeing,  teaching, 
administering  the  sacraments,  and  ruling  too;  and  (2.) 
"  Mere  Ruling  Elders,  who  are  to  help  the  pastors  in  over- 
seeing and  ruling."  *  * — "  That  the  elders  of  both  sorts 
form  the  Presbytery  of  overseers  and  rulers,  which  should 
be  in  every  particular  church."  *  *  3.  ^^  Deacons,  who  are 
to  take  care  of  the  poor,  and  of  the  church's  treasure." — 
That  these  officers  being  chosen  and  ordained,  have  no 
lordly,  arbitrary,  or  imposing  power  ;  but  can  only  rule 
and  minister  with  the  consent  of  the  brethren;  who  ought 
not  in  contempt  to  be  called  the  laity,  but  to  be  treated  as 
men  and  brethren  in  Christ,  not  as  slaves  or  minors." — 
"  That  no  churches  or  church  officers,  whatever,  have  any 
power  over  any  other  church  or  officers,  to  control  or  im- 
pose upon  them ;  but  are  all  equal  in  their  rights  and  privi- 
leges, and  ought  to  be  independent  in  the  exercise  and  en- 
joyment of  them." 

IV.  As  to  the  sacraments  and  church  administrations. — - 
"  They  held  that  Baptism  is  a  seal  of  the  covenant  of  grace, 
and  should  be  dispensed  only  to  visible  believers,  with  their 
unadult  children."  *  * — "  That  the  Lord's  supper  should 
be  received  as  it  was  at  first,  even  in  Christ's  immediate 
presence,  in  the  table  posture." — "  That  no  set  forms  of 
prayer  should  be    imposed."  —  "That    excommunication 


THE  LEYDEN  CHURCH.  363 

should  be  wholly  spiritual,  a  mere  rejecting  the  scandalous 
from  the  communion  of  the  church  in  the  holy  sacraments, 
and  those  other  spiritual  privileges  which  are  peculiar  to 
the  faithful." — "  They  were  very  strict  for  the  observation 
of  the  Lord's  day  ;  *  *  as  also  solemn  fastings  and  thanks- 
givings, as  the  state  of  Providence  requires  ;  but  all  other 
times,  not  prescribed  in  Scripture,  they  utterly  relinquish- 
ed."— Finally.  They  utterly  rejected  and  repudiated  the 
authority  of  man  to  invent  or  impose  any  religious 
rites,  ceremonies,  or  observances,  upon  the  churches  of 
Christ.* 

Such  were  the  principles  and  doctrines  of  John  Robinson 
and  his  execllent  church.  For  the  maintenance  of  these 
sentiments  they  were  hunted  down  like  wild  beasts,  and 
" /iMrHe<i "  out  of  the  kingdom  ;  not  being  allowed  even 
the  poor  privilege  of  exiling  themselves  for  Christ's  sake, 
until  persecution,  and  insult,  and  imprisonment  had  been 
heaped  upon  them.  But  that  God  who  "  seeth  not  as  man 
seeth,"  saw  the  end  from  the  beginning ;  and  was  wisely 
ordering  these  very  things  so  as  to  accomplish  his  own 
glorious  purposes.  He  who  hath  "  his  way  in  the  whirl- 
wind and  in  the  storm  "  was  directing  the  tempest  of  hie- 
rarchal  wrath,  so  as  to  make  it  glorify  Him. 

By  all  these  trials,  God  was  purifying  this  poor  church, 
and  rendering  it  more  fit  for  the  Master's  use.  When  he 
had  winnowed  his  wheat ;  when  he  had  refined  his  gold  ; 
when  he  had  fitted  his  people  for  the  work  which  he  had 
assigned  them  ; — then  he  put  it  into  their  hearts  to  seek  a 
new  world  ;  where  in  a  soil  more  friendly,  and  under  a  sky 
more  propitious,  they  might  plant  and  cherish  the  pure, 
simple,  and  scriptural  principles  of  Congregational  belief 

*  1  have  chiefly  followed  the  almost  faultless  Prince,  in  the 
above  summary. — New  Eng.  Chron.  Part  II.  Sec.  1. 


APPENDIX. 


No.  I. 


"  A  TRUE  DESCRIPTION,   OUT  OF  THE  WORD  OF  GOD,  OF   THE 
VISIBLE  CHURCH." 1589. 

Written,  probably,  by  Clyfton  or  Smyth,  the  predeces- 
sors of  John  Robinson  in  the  church  which  finally  emigra- 
ted to  New  England.     The  Description  runs  thus : 

"  As  there  is  but  one  GOD  and  Father  of  all,  one  Lord 
over  all,  and  one  Spirit  ;  so  is  there  but  one  Truth,  one 
Faith,  one  Salvation,  one  Church, — called  in  one  Hope, 
joined  in  one  Profession,  guided  by  one  Rule— even  the 
Word  of  the  Most  High.* 

"  This  Church,  as  it  is  universally  understood,  contain- 
eth  in  it  all  the  Elect  of  God  that  have  been,  are,  or  shall 
be  :  but  being  considered  more  particularly,  as  it  is  seen  in 
this  present  world,  it  consisteth  of  a  Company  and  Fellow- 
ship of  faithful  and  holy  people  gathered  in  the  Name  of 
Christ  Jesus  their  only  King,  Priest,  and  Prophet ;  worship- 
ping Him  aright,  being  peaceably  and  quietly  governed  by 
his  Officers  and  Laws;  keeping  the  unity  of  Faith  in  the 
bond  of  peace,  and  love  unfeigned. t 

*  Gen.i.  1  ;  Exod.  xx  :^ ;  1  Tim.  ii.  4;  Phil.  i.  27;  Eph.  ii.  18; 
John  viii.41  ;  Dent.  vi.  2o  ;  Rom  x.  8;  2  Tun.  iii.  15;  John  viii. 
51  ;  1  John  ii.  3,  etc. 

t  Gen.  xvii ;  1  Pet.  i.  2  ;  Rev.  vii.  9 ;  1  Cor.  x.  3  ;  John  xvii.  10, 
20.  Psal.cxi.  1 ;  cxlix.  1  ;  Isa.  Ixii.  12;  Eph  i.  1  ;  1  Cor.  i.  2;  Deut. 
xiv.2.  Deut.  xii.5;  John  vi  37;  iii.  14  ;  xii.32;  Luke  xvii.  37; 
Gen.xliv.  [xiix  ]10;  Psahn  xlv.  6;  Zech.  ix.  9  ;  Heb  i.  8  ;  Rom. 
viii.  34  ;  John  xvii  ;  Heb.  v.  9  ;  viii.  1  ;  iv.  14  ;  Deut.  xviii.  15  ; 
Matt.  xvii.  5;  Heb  i.  2:  Gen.  xiv.  18;  Exod.  xx. 4— 8;  Lev.x. 
5;  John  iv.  23;  Matt.  xi.  29;  1  Cor.  xi.  16;  Mar.  xiii.  34.  Rev. 
xxii.9;  Eph.iv.  3;  lCor.i.l3;  Mark  ix. 50;  John  xiii.  34  ; 
1  Cor.  xiii.  4  ;  1  Pet.  i.  22  ;  1  John  iii.  18. 


APPENDIX.  365 

"  Most  joyful,  excellent,  and  glorious  things,  are  every- 
where in  the  Scriptures  spoken  of  this  Church.  It  is  call- 
ed the  city,  house,  temple,  and  mountain  of  the  Eternal 
God  ;  the  chosen  generation,  the  holy  nation,  the  peculiar 
people,  the  vineyard,  the  garden  enclosed,  the  spring  shut 
up,  the  sealed  fountain,  the  orchard  of  pomegranates  with 
sweet  fruits,  the  heritage,  the  Kingdom  of  Christ ;  yea,  his 
sister,  his  love,  his  spouse,  his  queen,  and  his  body  ;  the  joy 
of  the  whole  earth.  To  this  Society  are  the  covenant  and 
all  the  promises  made,  of  peace,  of  love,  and  of  salvation; 
of  the  presence  of  God  ;  of  his  graces,  of  his  power,  and 
of  his  protection.* 

"  And,  surely,  if  this  Church  be  considered  in  her  parts, 
she  shall  appear  most  beautiful ;  yea,  most  wonderful,  and 
even  ravishing  the  senses  to  conceive,  much  more  to  be- 
hold ;  what  then  to  enjoy  so  blessed  communion  !  For  be- 
hold, her  King  and  Lord  is  the  King  of  peace,  and  Lord 
himself  of  all  glory.  She  enjoyeth  most  holy  and  heavenly 
Laws  ;  most  faithful  and  vigilant  Pastors  ;  most  sincere  and 
pure  Teachers ;  most  careful  and  upright  Governors ; 
most  diligent  and  trusty  Deacons  ;  most  loving  and  sober 
Relievers ;  and  a  most  humble,  meek,  obedient,  faithful, 
and  loving  People  :  every  Stone  living,  elect,  and  precious  ; 
every  Stone  hath  his  beauty,  his  burden,  and  his  order:  all 
bound  to  edify  one  another,  exhort,  reprove,  and  comfort 
one  another;  lovingly  as  to  their  own  members,  faithfully 
as  in  the  eyes  of  God.f 

"  No  Office,  here,  is  ambitiously  affected ;  no  Law 
wrongfully  wrested,  or  wilfully  neglected  ;  no  Truth  hid, 

*  Psal.  Ixxxvii ;  ihid. ;  1  Tim.  iii.  15  ;  Heb,  iii.  G.  1  Cor.  iii.  17. 
Isa.  ii.  2;  Mic,  iv.  1;  Zech.  viii,  3.  1  Pet.  ii.  9  Isa.  v.  1  ; 
xxvii.  2;  Sol.  Song.  iv.  12;  Isa.  Ii.  3.  Isa.  xix.  2."3.  Mic.  v.  2; 
Matt.  iii.  2;  John  iii.  5.  Sol.  Song.  v.  2.  Psal.  xlv.  9.  1  Cor. 
xii.  27;  Eph.  i.  2,  3.  Gal.  iv.  28  ;  Rom.  ix.  4.  Psal.  cxlvii.  14  ; 
2Thess.  iii.  16.  Isa.  xlvi.  13;  Zech.  xiv.  17.  Isa.  Ix ;  Ezek. 
xlvii  ;  Zech.  iv.  12.    Ezek.  xlviii.  35  ;  Matt,  xxviii.  20  ;  Isa   Ixii. 

t  Sol.  Song.  vi.  4,9.  Isa.  Ixii,  11;  John  xii  15;  Heb.  ii.  7.  8. 
Matt.  xi.  30;  1  John  v  3.  Eph.  iv.  11  ;  Acts  xx.  Rom.  xii.  7. 
1  Cor.  xii.  28;  Rom.  xii.  8.  Acts  vi.  Rom.  xii.  8.  Matt.  v.  5; 
Ezek.  xxxvi.  38;  Isa.  Ix.  8;  Deut.  xviii.  9—13.  1  Pet.  ii.  5; 
lKingsvii.9;  Zech.  xiv.  21.  Gal.  vi.2.  1  Cor.  xii.  Rom.  xii. 
3.  &c.  Heb.  X.  24.  Lev.  xix.  17;  1  Thess.  iv.  9.  Col.  iii.  23; 
1  John  iii.  20. 

31* 


366  HISTORY  OF  CONGkEGATlONALIsM. 

or  perverted  :  every  one,  here,  hath  freedom  and  power — 
not  disturbing  the  peaceable  order  of  the  Church — to  utter 
his  complaints  and  griefs,  and  freely  to  reprove  the  trans- 
gression and  errours  of  any,  without  exception  of  persons.* 

"  Here,  is  no  intrusion,  or  climbing  up  another  way  into 
the  Sheepfold,  than  by  the  holy  and  free  election  of  the 
Lord's  holy  and  free  People  ;  and  that,  according  to  the 
Lord's  Ordinance  ;  humbling  themselves  by  fasting  and 
prayer  before  the  Lord  ;  craving  the  direction  of  his  Holy 
Spirit,  for  the  trial  and  approving  of  gifts,  etc.t 

"Thus,  they  orderly  proceed  to  Ordination,  by  fasting 
and  prayer  ;  in  which  action  the  Apostles  used  laying  on  of 
hands.  Thus,  haih  every  one  of  the  People  interest  in  the 
election  and  ordination  of  their  Officers  ;  as  also,  in  the 
administration  of  Offices,  upon  the  transgression,  offence, 
abuse,  etc. ;  having  an  especial  care  unto  the  inviolable 
order  of  the  Church,  as  is  aforesaid. | 

"  Likewise,  in  this  Church,  they  have  holy  Laws,  as 
limits  and  bonds,  which  it  is  lawful  at  no  hand  to  trans- 
gress :  they  have  laws  to  direct  them  in  the  choice  of  every 
Officer,  what  kind  of  men  the  Lord  will  have.  Their  Pas- 
tor must  be  apt  to  teach  ;  no  young  scholar  ;  able  to  divide 
the  Word  aright ;  holding  fast  that  faithful  Word,  accord- 
ing to  doctrine,  that  he  may  be  able  also  to  exhort,  rebuke, 
improve,  with  wholesome  doctrine,  and  to  convince  them 
that  say  against  if.  He  must  be  a  man  that  loveth  good- 
ness :  he  must  be  wise,  righteous,  holy,  temperate ;  he 
must  be  of  life  unreprovable,  as  God's  Steward  ;  he  must 
be  generally  well  reported  of,  and  one  that  ruleth  his  own 
household  under  obedience  with  all  honesty  ;  he  must  be 
modest,  humble,  meek,  gentle,  and  loving  ;  he  must  be  a 
man  of  great  ))atience,  compassion,  labour,  and  diligence  ; 
he  must  always  be  careful  and  watchful  over  the  Flock 
whereof  the  Lord  hath  made  him  Overseer,  with  all  willing- 
ness and  cheerfulness ;  not  holding  his  office  in  respect  of 

*  2  Cor.  ii.  17  ;  3  .John  0.  1  Tim.  iv  2,  3  ;  v.  21  ;  vi  14.  Gal. 
vi.  12.  1  Cor  V.  Jer.  xxiii.  28;  1  Tim.  iii.  15.  1  Cor,  vi  ;  xiv. 
30;  Col.  iv.  17. 

tJohnx.l.     Acts  i.  23;  vi.  3;  xiv.  23. 

t  ITim.  iv.14;  v.  22.  Luke  xvii.  3.  Rom.xvi.  17;  Col.iv.  17. 


APPENDIX.  367 

pefsons,  but  doing  his  duty  to  every  soul,  as  he  will  an- 
swer before  the  Chief  Shepherd.* 

"  Their  Doctor  or  Teacher  must  be  a  man  apt  to  teach  ; 
able  to  divide  the  Word  of  God  aright,  and  to  deliver  sound 
and  wholesome  doctrine  from  the  same  ;  still  building  upon 
that  sound  ground-work,  he  must  be  mighty  in  the  Scrip- 
tures, able  to  convince  the  gainsayers,  and  careful  to  deli- 
ver his  doctrine  pure,  sound,  and  plain,  not  wiih  curiosity 
or  affectation,  but  so  that  it  may  edify  the  most  simple,  ap- 
proving it  to  every  man's  conscience  :  he  must  be  of  life 
unreprovable,  one  that  can  govern  his  own  household  ;  he 
must  be  of  manners  sober,  temperate,  modest,  gentle,  and 
loving. t 

"  Their  Elders  must  be  of  wisdom  and  judgment ;  en- 
dued wMlh  the  Spirit  of  God  ;  able  to  discern  between 
cause  and  cause,  between  plea  and  plea  ;  and  accordingly, 
to  prevent  and  redress  evils  :  always  vigilant  and  [super]- 
intending,  to  see  the  statutes,  ordinances,  and  laws  of  God, 
kept  in  the  church  ;  and  that,  not  only  by  the  People  in 
obedience  ;  but,  to  see  the  Officers  do  their  duties.  These 
men  must  he  of  life  likewise,  unreprovable,  governing  their 
own  families  orderly  ;  they  must  be  also,  of  manners  sober, 
gentle,  modest,  loving,  temperate,  etc. J 

"  Their  Deacons  must  be  men  of  honest  report,  having 
the  mystery  of  the  Faith  in  a  j)ure  conscience  ;  endued 
with  the  Holy  Ghost :  they  must  be  grave,  temperate  ;  not 
given  to  excess,  nor  to  filthy  lucre.<^ 

"  Their  Relievers,  or  Widows,  must  be  women  of  sixty 
years  of  age  at  the  least,  for  avoiding  of  inconveniences  : 
they  must  be  well  reported  of  for  good  works  ;  such  as 
have  nourished  their  children  ;  such  as  have  been  harbour- 
ers  to  strangers  ;  diligent  and  serviceable  to  the  saints, — 
compassionate  and  helpful  to  them  in  adversity  ;  given  to 

-  Matt.  V.  19;  1  Tim.  i  18.  Deut.  xxiii.  10;  Mai.  ii.  7;  1  Tim. 
iii.l,etc.  2  Tim.  ii.  15.  Tit.  i.9;  2  Tim.  iv.  2.  Tit.  i.  7,8. 
Num.  xii.  3,  7  ;  Isa.  1.  4 — 6  ;  Jer.  iii.  15  ;  Ezek.  xxxiv.  18;  Acts 
XX  ;  1  Pet.  V.  1—4;   1  Tim.  v.  21. 

+  1  Tim.  iii.;  Tit.  i.  ;  2  Tim.  ii.  15;  1  Cor.  i.  17;  ii.  4. 

t  iNum   xi.24,25;  2  Chron.  xix.  8 ;  Acts  xv  ;  1  Tim.  iii;  v. 

§    Acts  vi.  3;  1  Tim.  iii.  8,  9. 


368  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

every  good  work,  continuing  in  supplications  and   prayers 
night  and  day.* 

"  These  Officers  must  first  be  duly  proved  ;  then,  if  they 
be  found  'blameless,'  administer,  etc.t 

"  Now,  as  the  persons,  gifts,  conditions,  manners,  life, 
and  proof  of  these  officers,  are  set  down  by  the  Holy 
Ghost ;  so  are  their  Offices  limited,  severed,  and  divers. J 

"  The  Pastor's  Office  is  to  feed  the  Sheep  of  Christ  in 
green  and  wholesome  pastures  of  his  Word,  and  lead  them 
to  the  still  waters,  even  to  the  pure  fountain  and  river  of 
life.  He  must  guide  and  keep  those  sheep  by  that  Heav- 
enly Sheephook  and  pastoral  staff  of  the  Word  ;  thereby, 
drawing  them  to  him  ;  thereby,  looking  into  their  souls, 
even  unto  their  most  secret  thoughts  ;  thereby,  discerning 
their  diseases  ;  and  thereby,  curing  them  :  applying  to  every 
disease  a  fit  and  convenient  medicine  ;  and,  according  to 
the  quality  and  danger  of  the  disease,  give  warning  to  the 
Church  that  they  may  orderly  proceed  to  Excommunica- 
tion :  further,  he  must  by  this  his  Sheephook,  watch  over 
and  defend  his  Flock  from  ravenous  beasts,  and  the  '  Wolf,' 
and  take  the  '  little  Foxes,'  etc.§ 

"  The  Doctor's  Office  is  already  set  down,  in  his  descrip- 
tion :  his  special  care  must  be  to  build  upon  the  only  true 
ground-work,  gold,  silver,  and  precious  stones,  that  his 
work  may  endure  the  trial  of  the  fire ;  and,  by  the  light  of 
the  same  fire,  reveal  the  timber,  hay,  and  stubble  of  false 
Teachers.  He  must  take  diligent  heed  to  keep  the  Church 
from  errors  ;  and  further,  he  must  deliver  his  doctrine  so 
plainly,  simply,  and  purely,  that  the  Church  may  increase 
with  the  increase  of  God,  and  grow  up  unto  Him  which  is 
the  Head,  Jesus  Christ. |1 

"  The  Office  of  the  Ancients  is  expressed  in  their  de- 
scription :  their  especial  care  must  be  to  see  the  ordinances 


*  1  Tim.  V.  9.  10.         t  1  Tim.  iii.  10.         t  Cor.  xii.  12,  IS,  28. 

§  Psal.  xxiii  ;  Lev.  x.  10,  11;  Num.  xviii.  1  ;  Ezek.  xliv.  23 ; 
xxxiii  ;  xxxiv;  Johnxxi.15;  Acts  xx.  28;  1  Pet.  v.  1 — 4;  Zech. 
xi.7;  Rev.  xxii.  2;  Luke  xii.  42;  2Cor.  x.4,5;  Heb.  iv.  12; 
Johnx.  11,12;  Sol.  Song.  ii.  15. 

II  1  Cor.  iii.  11,  12;  Lev.  x.  10  ;  Ezek.  xxxiii.  1,  2.  etc.  ;  xliv. 
24;  Mai.  ii.  6  ;  1  Cor.  iii.  11;  1  Cor.  i.l7;  ITim.  iv.  IG;  vi.  20  ; 
Eph.  ii.  20  ;  Heb.  vi.  1  ;  1  Pet.  ii.  2. 


APPENDIX.  369 

of  God  truly  tauf^ht  and  practised,  as  well  by  the  Officers 
in  doinjT  their  duty  upriglitly,  as  to  see  that  the  People  obey 
willingly  and  readily.  It  is  their  duty  to  see  the  Congre- 
gation holily  and  quietly  ordered,  and  no  way  disturbed  by 
the  contentious  and  disobedient,  froward,  and  obstinate  ; 
not  taking  away  the  liberty  of  the  least,  but  upholding  the 
right  of  all,  wisely  judging  of  times  and  [other]  circum- 
stances. They  must  be  ready  Assistants  to  the  Pastor  and 
Teachers  ;  helping  to  bear  their  burden,  but  not  intruding 
into  their  Office.* 

"  The  Deacon's  Office  is  faithfully  to  gather  and  collect, 
by  the  oidinance  of  the  Church,the  goods  and  benevolence 
of  the  Faithful ;  and  by  the  same  direction,  diligently  and 
trustily  to  distribute  them,  according  to  the  necessity  of  the 
Saints.  Further,  they  must  inquire  and  consider  of  the 
proportion  of  the  wants,  both  of  the  Officers  and  the  poor, 
and  accordingly  relate  unto  the  Church,  that  provision  may 
be  made.t 

"  The  Reliever's  and  Widow's  Office  is  to  minister  to  the 
sick,  lame,  weary,  and  diseased,  such  helpful  comforts  as 
they  need,  by  watching,  tending,  and  helping  them.  Fur- 
ther, they  must  show  good  example  to  the  younger  women, 
in  sober,  modest,  and  godly  conversation  ;  avoiding  idle- 
ness, vain  talk,  and  light  behaviour. J 

"  These  Officers,  though  they  be  divers  and  several,  yet 
are  they  not  severed,  lest  there  should  be  a  division  in  the 
Body  ;  but  they  are  as  members  of  the  Body,  having  the 
same  care  one  of  another;  jointly  doing  their  several  duties 
to  the  service  of  the  Saints,  and  to  the  edification  of  the 
Body  of  Christ,  till  all  meet  togeiher  in  the  perfect  measure 
of  the  fulness  of  Christ ;  by  whom,  all  the  Body  being,  in 
the  meanwhile,  thus  coupled  and  knit  together  by  every 
joint  for  the  furniture  thereof,  according  to  the  effectual 
power  which  is  in  the  measure  of  every  part,  receiveth  in- 
crease of  the  Body  unto  the  edifying  of  itself  in  love  :   nei- 


*Num.xi.  1(1;  Deut.i.13;  xvi.18;  2  Chron.  xix.  8  ;  Exod. 
xxxix.  42;  1  Tim.  iii.  15;  2Tim.  i.  13;  1  Cor.  xi.  16;  xiv.  33; 
Gal.   ii.   4,5,14;    Col.   iv.  IG,  17;    Acts  xx;    i  Pet.  v.  1  ;    Rom. 

xii.  8. 

\  Actsvi.;  Rom.  xii.  8.  t  Rom.  xii.  8;    1  Tim.  v.  9,  etc. 


370  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

ther  can  any  of  these  Offices  be  wanting,  without  grievous 
lameness,  and  apparent  deformity  of  the  Body,  yea,  violent 
injury  to  the  Head,  Christ  Jesus.* 

"  Thus  this  holy  army  of  Saints  is  marshalled  here  in 
earth,  by  these  Officers,  under  the  conduct  of  their  Glori- 
ous Emperor,  Christ  ;  that  victorious  Michael :  thus  it  march- 
ethjin  this  most  heavenly  order  and  gracious  array,  against 
all  Enemies,  both  bodily  and  ghostly  ;  peaceable,  in  itself, 
as  Jerusalem  ;  terrible  to  the  Enemy  as  an  army  with  ban- 
ners, triumphing  over  their  tyranny  with  patience,  their 
cruelty  with  meekness,  and  over  Death  itself  with  dying. 
Thus,  through  the  blood  of  that  spotless  Lamb,  and  that 
Word  of  their  testimony,  they  are  more  than  conquerors  ; 
bruising  the  head  of  the  Serpent:  yea,  through  the  power 
of  His  Word,  they  have  power  to  cast  down  Satan  like 
lightning  ;  to  tread  upon  serpents  and  scorpions  ;  to  cast 
down  strong  holds,  and  everything  that  exalteth  itself 
against  God  :  the  gates  of  Hell,  and  all  the  Principalities 
and  Powers  of  the  World,  shall  not  prevail  against  it.t 

"  Further  :  He  hath  given  them  the  Keys  of  the  King- 
dom of  Heaven,  that  whatsoever  they  bind  in  Earth,  by  his 
Word,  shall  be  bound  in  Heaven  ;  and  whatsoever  they 
loose  on  Earth,  shall  be  loosed  in  Heaven.J: 

"  Now  this  Power  which  Christ  hath  given  unto  his 
Church,  and  to  every  Member  of  his  Church,  to  keep  it  in 
order,  he  hath  not  left  it  to  their  discretion  and  lusts  to  be 
used  or  neglected  as  they  will  ;  but  in  his  Last  Will  and 
Testament,  he  hath  set  down  both  an  order  of  proceeding 
and  an  end  to  which  it  is  used.§ 

"  If  the  Fault  be  private,  holy  and  loving  admonition  and 
reproof  are  to  be  used,  with  an  inward  desire  and  earnest 
care  to  win  their  Brother  ;  but  if  he  will  not  hear,  yet  to 
take  two  or  three  other  Brethren  with  him,  whom  he  know- 


"  Luke  ix.  4(),  47;  John  xiii.l2— 17;  1  Cor.  xii.  12,25,28; 
Eph.  iv.  11-13,  10. 

t  Rum.  xii;  1  Cor.  xii. ;  Rev.  xiv.  1,2;  Sol.  Song  vi  3  ;  Rev. 
xii.  11  ;  Luke  X.  18,  19;  2  Cor.  x.  5  ;  Matt.  xvi.  18  ;  Rom.  viii. 
38,  3!). 

X  Matt.  xvi.  19  ;  John  xx.  23  ;  Matt,  xviii.  18. 

§  Matt.  xvi.  10,19;  xviii.  15— 18;  xxviii.  20;  Ocut.  xii.  31 ,  32; 
Rev.  xxii.  18,  19. 


APPENDIX.  371 

elh  most  meet  for  that  purpose,  that  by  the  mouth  of  two 
or  three  witnesses  every  word  may  be  confirmed  :  and  if 
he  refuse  to  hear  thern,  then,  to  declare  the  matter  to  the 
Church  ;  which  ought  severely  and  sharply  to  reprehend, 
and  gravely  to  admonish,  and  lovingly  to  persuade  the  party 
offending;  showing  him  the  heinousness  of  his  offence, and 
the  danirer  of  his  obstinacy,  and  the  fearful  judgments  of 
the  Lord.* 

"  All  this,  notwithstanding,  the  Church  is  not  to  hold  him 
as  an  enemy,  but  to  admonish  him,  and  pray  for  him  as  a 
Brother  ;  proving  if,  at  any  time,  the  Lord  will  give  him  re- 
pentance :  for  this  power  is  not  given  them  to  the  destruc- 
tion of  any,  but  to  the  edification  of  all.f 

"  If  this  prevail  not  to  draw  him  to  repentance,  then  are 
they,  in  the  Name  and  power  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  wiih  the 
whole  Congregation,  reverently,  in  prayer,  to  proceed  to 
Excommunication  :  that  is,  unto  the  casting  him  out  of  their 
congregation  and  fellowship,  covenant  and  protection  of  the 
Lord,  for  his  disobedience  and  obstinacy;  and,  committing 
him  to  Satan  for  the  destruction  of  the  flesh,  that  the  spirit 
may  be  saved  in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  if  such  be  His 
good  will  and  pleasure. | 

"  Further  :  they  are  to  warn  the  whole  Congregation  and 
all  other  Faithful,  to  hold  him  as  a  heathen  and  publican, 
and  to  abstain  themselves  from  his  society,  as  not  to  eat  or 
drink  with  him,  etc.  ;  unless  it  be  such  as  of  necessity  must 
needs,  as  his  wife,  his  children,  and  family  ;  yet  these,  if 
they  be  Members  of  the  Church,  are  not  to  join  to  him  in 
any  spiritual  exercise. § 

"If  the  Offence  be  Public,  the  party  is  publicly  to  be  re- 
proved and  admonished  :  if  he  then  repent  not,  to  proceed 
to  Excommunication,  as  aforesaid.  || 

"  The  Repentance  of  the  party  must  be  proportionate  to 
the  Offence  ;  namely,  if  the  Offence  be  public,  public  ;  if 

*  Lev.xix,  17,18;  Matt,  xviii.  1.5:  Deut.xix.l5;  Matt,  xviii.  16. 

t  2  Thes.  iii.  15  ;  2  Cor.  x.  8  ;  xiii.  10. 

X   Matt,  xviii.  17;  1  Cor.  v.  11. 

§   Matt,  xviii.  17;  1  Cor.  v.  11. 

!|   I  Tim.  V.  20;  Gal.  ii.  14  ;  Josh.  vii.  19;  2  Cor.  vii.  9. 


372  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

private,  private  :  humbled,  submissive,  sorrowful,  unfeigned, 
giving  glory  to  the  Lord.* 

"  There  must  great  care  be  had  of  Admonitions ; 
that  they  be  not  captious,  or  curious,  finding  fault  where 
none  is,  neither  yet  in  bitterness  or  reproach  ;  for  that  were 
to  destroy  and  not  to  save  our  Brother  :  but  they  must  be 
carefully  done,  with  prayer  going  before ;  they  must  be 
seasoned  with  truth,  gravity,  love,  and  peace. t 

"  Moreover,  in  this  Church  is  an  especial  care  had,  by 
every  Member  thereof,  of  Offences.  The  strong  ought  not 
to  offend  the  weak,  nor  the  weak  to  judge  the  strong  ;  but 
all  graces,  here,  are  given  to  the  service  and  edification  of 
each  other  in  love  and  long-suffering.| 

"  In  this  Church  is  the  Truth  purely  taught,  and  surely 
kept  :  here  are  the  Covenant,  the  Sacraments,  and  Promi- 
ses ;  the  Graces,  the  Glory,  the  Presence,  the  Worship  of 
God,  etc.§ 

"  Into  this  Temple  entereth  no  unclean  thing,  neither 
whatsoever  worketh  abominations  or  lies;  but  they  which 
are  written  in  the  Lamb's  Book  of  Life.jl  But '  without' 
this  Church  shall  be  dogs,  and  enchanters,  and  whoremon- 
gers, and  murderers,  and  idolaters,  and  whatsoever  loveth 
and  maketh   lies."^— 1589.** 

*  Lev.  xix.  17,  18  ;   Prov.  x.  12  ;  Rom.  xii.  19  ;  xiii.  10  ;  xiv.  1. 

t  Matt,  xviii.  15;  xxvi.  8;  Gal.  vi.  1,2;  2  Tim.  ii.  24;  Mark  ix. 
50;  Eph.  iv.  29;  Jas.  v.  15,  19.20. 

t  Luke  xvii.  I  ;   Prov.  x.  12;  Rom.  xiv.  13,  19;  Gal.  vi.  2. 

§  Gen.  xvii.;  Lev.  xxvi.  1 1 ,  12  ;  laa.  xliv.3;  Gal.  iv.  28;  vi. 
16;  Isai.lx.  15;  Deut.  iv.  12.  13;  Isai.  Ivi.  7  ;  1  Tim.  iii.l5; 
Isai.  iii.  8. 

II  Isai.  Iii.  1  ;  Ezek.  xliv.  9;  Isai.  xxxv.  8;  Zech.  xiv.  21  ;  Rev. 
xxi.  27. 

11  Rom.  ii.  9  ;  Rev.  xxii.  15. 

**  Hanbury,  Vol.  L  pp.  28—34. 


APPENDIX.  373 


No.  II. 
REV.  JOHN  Robinson's  answer  to  Joseph  hall,  showing 

THE    grounds    on     WHICH    THE    SEPARATION     WAS    MADE 
FROM  THE  CHURCH  OF  ENGLAND. 

*'  Preamble. — It  is  a  hard  thing  even  for  sober-minded 
men,  in  cases  of  controversy,  to  use,  soberly,  the  advanta- 
ges of  the  times ;  upon  which,  whilst  men  are  mounted  on 
high,  they  use  to  behold  such  as  they  oppose  too  overly, 
and  not  without  contempt;  and  go  are  oftitmes  emboldened 
to  roll  upon  them,  as  from  aloft,  very  weak  and  weightless 
discourses  :  thinking  any  slight  and  slender  opposition  suffi- 
cient to  oppress  those  lUid;- lings  whom  they  have,  as  they 
suppose,  at  so  great  an  advantage.  Upon  this  very  pre- 
sumption, it  cometh  to  pass,  that  this  Author  undertaketh 
thus  solemnly  and  severely  to  censure  a  cause  whereof,  as 
appeareth  in  the  sequel  of  the  discourse,  he  is  utterly  igno- 
rant: which,  had  he  been  but  half  so  careful  to  have  under- 
stood as  he  hath  been  forward  to  censure,  he  would  either 
have  been,  I  doubt  not,  more  equal  towards  it,  or  more 
weighty  against  it.  As  this  Epistle  is  come  to  my  hands, 
so  I  wish  the  Answer  of  it  may  come  to  the  hands  of  him 
that  occasioned  it.  Entreating  the  Christian  Reader,  in  the 
Name  of  the  Lord,  unpartially  to  behold,  without  either 
prejudice  of  cause  or  respect  of  person,  what  is  written  on 
both  sides  ;  and  from  the  Court  of  a  sound  Conscience,  to 
give  just  judgment. 

"  An  Answer,  etc. — The  'Crime'  here  objected,  is 
'  Separation  :'  a  thing  very  odious  in  the  eyes  of  all  them 
from  whom  it  is  made  ;  as  evermore  casting  upon  them  the 
imputation  of  evil,  whereof  all  men  are  impatient.  And 
hence  it  cometh  to  pass  that  the  Church  of  England  can 
better  brook  the  vilest  persons' continuing  communion  with 
it,  than  any  whomsoever  separaiing  from  it,  though  upon 
never  so  just  and  well-grounded  reasons.  And  yet  separa- 
tion from  the  world,  and  so  from  the  men  of  the  world,  and 
so  from  the  Prince  of  the  world  that  reigneth  in  them,  and 
so  from  whatsoever  is  contrary  to  God,  is  the  first  step  to 
our  communion  with  God  and  angels  and  good  men,  as 
the  first  step  to  a  ladder  is  to  leave  the  earth  ! 
32 


374  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

"The  'Separation'  we  have  made,  in  respect  of  our 
knowledge  and  obedience,  is  indeed  Mate'  and  new  ;  yet 
is  it,  ii!  the  nature  and  causes  thereof,  as  ancient  as  the 
Gospel,  which  was  first  founded  in  the  '  enmity '*  which 
God  himself  put  betwixt  the  seed  of  the  woman  and  the 
seed  of  the  serpent ;  which  '  enmity '  hath  not  only  been 
successively  continued,  but  also  visibly  manifested  by  the 
actual  'Separation'  of  all  true  Churches  from  the  world,  in 
their  collection  and  constitution,  before  the  Law,  under  the 
Law,  and  under  the  Gospel. t  Which  Separation  the 
Church  of  England  neither  hath  made  nor  doth  make,  but 
stands  actually  one  with  all  that  part  of  the  world  within 
the  Kingdom,  without  separation  :  for  which  cause,  amongst 
others,  we  have  chosen,  by  the  grace  of  God,  rather  to  sep- 
arate ourselves  to  the  Lord  from  it,  than  with  it  from  Him  : 
in  the  visible  constitution  of  it. 

"  To  the  title  of  Ringleader,'  wherewith  it  pleaseth  this 
'Pistler  to  style  me,  I  answer,  That  if  the  thing  I  have  be 
good,  it  is  good  and  commendable  to  have  been  forward  in 
it ;  if  it  be  evil,  let  it  be  reproved  by  the  light  of  God's 
Word;  and  that  God  to  whom  L  have  done  that  I  have 
done,  will,  I  doubt  not,  give  me  both  to  see  and  to  heal  my 
error,  by  speedy  repentance  :  if  I  have  fled  away  on  foot. 
I  shall  return  on  horseback.  But  as  I  durst  never  set  foot 
into  this  way,  but  upon  a  most  sound  and  unresislible  con- 
viction of  conscience  by  the  Word  of  God,  as  I  was  per- 
suaded, so  must  my  retiring  be  wrought  by  more  solid  rea- 
sons, from  the  same  Word,  than  are  to  be  found  in  a  thou- 
sand such  pretty  pamphlets  and  formal  flourishes  as  this  is. 

"  Your  pitying  of  us,  and  sorrowing  for  us,  especially  for 
the  wrong  done  by  us,  were,  in  you,  commendable  affec- 
tions;  if  by  us  justly  occasioned  ;  but  if  your  Church  be 
deeply  drenched  in  Apostacy,  and  you  cry  '  peace,  peace,' 
when  sudden  and  certain  desolation  is  at  harid,  it  is  you  that 
do  the  wrong,  though  you  make  the  complaint.  And 
so,  being  cruel  towards  yourselves,  and  your  own  whom 
you  flatter,  you  cannot  be  truly  pitiful  towards  others  whom 

*   Gen.  ill.  15. 

t  Gen.  iv.  13,  14,  16.  vi.  1,  2  vii.l,v/ithl  Pet.  iii.  20  .21 .  Gen. 
xii,  2.  Lev.  XX.  24.  26.  Neh.  ix.  2.  John  xvii.  14,  IG.  Acts  ii.  40. 
xix.  9.   I  Cor.  vi.  17. 


APPENDIX. 


375 


you  bewail.  But  I  will  not  discourage  you  in  this  affection, 
lest  we  find  few  in  tiie  same  fault  ;  the  most,  instead  of 
'  pity  '  and  compassion,  affording  nothing  but  fury  and  in- 
dignation. 

"The  first  action  laid  against  us  is  of  '  unnaturalness,' 
and  ingratitude,  towards  our  '  Mother,'  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, for  our  causeless  '  Separation  '  from  her.  To  which 
unjust  accusation,  and  trival  querimony,  our  most  just  de- 
fence hath  been,  and  is.  That  to  our  knowledge,  we  have 
done  her  no  wrong.  We  do  freely,  and  with  all  thankful- 
ness, acknowledge  every  good  thing  she  hath,  and  which 
ourselves  have  there  received.  The  superabundant  grace 
of  God  covering  and  passing  by,  the  manifold  enormities 
in  that  Church,  wherewith  these  good  things  are  insepara- 
bly commingled  ;  and  wherein  we  also,  through  ignorance 
and  infirmity,  were  inwrapped.  But  what  then  ?  Should 
we  still  have  continued  in  sin,  that  grace  might  have 
abounded  ?  If  God  have  caused  a  further  truth,  like  a  light 
in  a  dark  place,  to  shine  in  our  hearts,  should  we  still  have 
mingled  that  light  with  darkness,  contrary  to  the  Lord's 
own  practice.  Gen.  1:  4;  and,  express  precept,  2  Cor. 
6:  14  ? 

"  But,  the  Church  of  England,  say  you,  is  our '  Mother,' 
and  so  ought  not  to  be  avoided.  But,  say  I,  we  must  not 
so  cleave  to  '  Holy  Mother'  Church  as  [that]  we  neglect  our 
Heavenly  Father  and  his  Commandments  :  which,  we 
know,  in  that  estate,  we  could  not  but  transgress  ;  and  that 
heinously,  and  against  our  consciences  ;  not  only  in  the 
want  of  many  Christian  Ordinances,  to  which  we  were  most 
strait ly  bound,  both  by  God's  Word  and  our  own  necessi- 
ties; but  also  in  our  most  sinful  subjection  to  Antichristian 
Enormities,  which  we  are  bound  to  eschew  as  Hell.  She 
is  our  '  Mother ;'  so  may  she  be,  and  yet  not  the  Lord's 
Wife!  Every  mother  of  children  is  not  a  wife.  '  Ammi 
and  Ruhamah  '  were  bidden  to  '  plead  '  with  their  '  mother,' 
apostate  Israel  ;  and  '  plead  '  that  she  was  '  not '  the  Lord's 
'  wife,'  nor  he  her  '  husband.'*  And  though  you  forbid  us 
a  thousand  times,  yet  must  we  '  plead.'  Not  to'  excuse' 
our  '  fault,'  but  to  justify  our  innocency  :  and  that  not  only, 
nor  so  much,  in  respect  of  ourselves,  as  of  the  Truth  which, 

"  Hos.  ii.  1,2. 


376  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM 

without  sacrilege,  we  may  not  suffer  to  be  condemned  un- 
heard. And  if  you  yet  hear  her  not,  rather  blame  your- 
selves as  deaf  than  as  dumb.  Is  not  '  Babylon  '  the  Mother 
of  God's  '  people  ;'  whom  He,  therefore,  commandeth  to 
'  depart  out  of  her,'  lest,  being  '  partakers  of  her  sins,'  they 
also  partake  of  her  '  plagues  ?'*  And,  to  conclude,  What 
say  you  more  against  us,  for  your  '  Mother,'  the  Church  of 
England  ;  than  the  Papists  do  for  their  Mother,  and  your 
Mother's  Mother,  the  Church  of  Rome,  against  you  whom 
they  condemn  as  unnatural  bastards,  and  impious  matri- 
cides, in  your  separations  from  her.?  And  were  not 
Luther,  Zuinglius,  Cranmer,  Latimer,  and  the  rest,  begot 
to  the  Lord  in  the  womb  of  the  Romish  Church  ?  Did  they 
not  receive  the  knowledge  of  his  truth  when  they  stood  ac- 
tual members  of  it  ?  Whom,  notwithstanding,  afterwards, 
they  forsook  ;  and  that  justly,  for  her  fornications!  But 
here,  in  the  name  of  the  Church  of  England,  you  wash  your 
hands  of  all  Babylonish  abominations  ;  which  you  pretend 
you  have  forsaken,  and  her,  for  and  with  them.  And,  in 
this  regard,  you,  [we]  speak  thus,  '  The  Reformation  you 
have  made  of  the  many  and  main  corruptions  of  the  Ro- 
mish Church  we  do  ingenuously  acknowledge,  and  do, 
withal,  embrace  with  you,  all  the  truths  which,  to  our  know- 
ledge, you  have  received  instead  of  them  ;  but  Rome  was 
not  built  all  in  a  day.' 

"The 'mystery  of  iniquity 'did  advance  itself  by  de- 
grees ;  and  as  the  rise  was,  so  must  the  ftiU  be.  That  '■  man 
of  sin,'  and  lawless  man,  must  languish  and  die  away  of  a 
consumption. t  And  what  though  many  of  the  highest  tow- 
ers of  Babel,  and  of  the  strongest  pillars  also,  be  demolish- 
ed and  pulled  down  ;  yet  may  the  building  stand  still, 
though  tottering  to  and  fro,  as  it  doth,  and  only  underprop- 
ped with  the  shoulder  and  arm  of  flesh;  without  which,  in 
a  very  moment,  it  would  fall  flat  upon  and  be  level  with 
the  earth.  You  have  renounced  many  false  doctrines  in 
Popery,  and,  in  their  places,  embraced  the  truth.  But 
what,  if  this  truth  be  taught  under  the  same  hateful  Prelacy  ; 
in  the  same  devised  office  of  ministry  ;  and  confused  com- 
munion of  the  profane  multitude  ;  and  that  mingled  with 
many  grievous  errors  ?     Shall  some  general  truths — yea, 

-'  Rev.  xviii.2.  4,  t  2  Thes.  ii.  «. 


APPENDIX.  377 

though  few  of  them,  in  the  particulars,  may  be  soundly- 
practised — sweeten  and  sanctify  the  other  errors  ?  Doth 
not  one  heresy  make  a  heretic  ?  And  doth  not  a  '  little  lea- 
ven,' whether  in  doctrine  or  manners,  '  leaven  the  whole 
lump  ?'*  If  antichrist  held  not  many  truths,  wherewith 
should  he  countenance  so  many  forgeries?  Or,  how  could 
his  work  be  a  '  mystery  of  iniquity  ;'  which,  in  Rome  is 
more  gross  and  palpable,  but  in  England  is  spun  with  a 
finer  thread,  and  so  more  hardly  discovered  ?  But  to  wade 
no  further  in  universalities,  we  will  take  a  little  time  to  ex- 
amine such  particulars  as  you  yourself  have  picked  out  for 
your  most  advantage,  to  see  whether  you  be  so  clear  of 
Babel's  towers  in  your  own  evidence,  as  you  bear  the 
world  in  hand. 

'"  Where,'  say  you,  'are  those  proud  towers  of  their  uni- 
versal Hierarchy  .?'  One  in  Lambeth  ;  another  in  Fulham  ; 
and  wheresoever  a  pontifical  Prelate  is,  or  his  Chancellor, 
Commissary,  or  other  subordinate,  there  is  a  tower  of  Babel 
unruinated  !  To  this  end  1  desire  to  know  of  you,  whether 
the  office  of  Archbishops,  Bishops,  and  the  rest  of  that 
rank,  were  not  parts  of  that  accursed  Hierarchy,  in  Queen 
Mary's  days  ;  and  members  of  that  '  man  of  sin  ?'  If  they 
were,  then  as  shoulders  and  arms  under  that  head,  the 
Pope  ;  and  over  the  inferior  members  ;  and  have  now,  the 
same  Ecclesiastical  Jurisdiction  derived  and  continued  upon 
them,  whereof  they  were  possessed  in  the  time  of  Popery  — 
as  it  is  plain  they  have,  by  the  first  Parliament  of  Queen 
Elizabeth  — Why  are  they  not  still  members  of  that  body, 
though  the  head,  the  Po|)e,  be  cut  off?  And  so  do  all  the 
Reformed  Churches  in  the  world — of  whose  testimony  you 
boast  so  loud — renounce  the  Prelacy  of  England,  as  part 
of  that  Pseudo-Clergy  and  Aniichristian  Hierarchy  derived 
from  Rome. 

"  Infallibility  of  Judgment  :  It  seems  the  Sacred,  so  railed, 
Synod,  assumeth  little  less  unio  herself  in  her  determina- 
tions. Otherwise,  how  durst  she  decree  so  absolutely,  as 
she  doth,  touching  things  reputed  '  indifferent  ;'  namely, 
*  That  all  men,  in  all  places,  must  submit  unto  them,  with- 

*  1  Cor.  V.  6.     Gal.  V.9.     Hag.  ii.  13. 
32* 


378  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

out  exception  or  limitation  ?  Except  she  could  infallibly 
determine  that  these  her  Ceremonies,  thus  absolutely  im- 
posed, should  edify  all  men  at  all  times,  how  durst  she  thus 
impose  them?  To  exact  obedience  in  and  unto  them, 
whether  they  offend  or  offend  not ;  whether  they  edify  or 
destroy  ;  were  intolerable  presumption. 

"  Dispensations  with  the  Laws  of  God,  and  Sins  of  Men  : 
To  let  pass  your  Ecclesiastical  Consistories,  wherein  sins, 
and  absolutions  from  them,  are  as  venal  and  saleable  as  al 
Rome, — is  it  not  a  Law  of  the  Eternal  God,  that  the  Min- 
isters of  the  Gospel,  the  bishops  or  elders,  should  be  '  apt' 
and 'able  '  to  '  teach  ?'*  And,  is  it  not  their  grievous  sin 
to  be  unapt  hereunto  ?t  And  yet,  who  knoweth  not  that 
the  Patrons  amongst  you  present,  that  the  Bishops  institute, 
the  Archdeacon's  induct,  the  Churches  receive;  and  the 
Laws,  both  Civil  and  Ecclesiastical,  allow  and  justify  Min- 
isters unapt  and  unable  to  '  teach  ?' 

"Insufficiency  and  non-residency  of  Ministers,  etc.  :  Is  it 
not  a  Law  of  the  Eternal  God,  that  the  '  Elders'  should 
•"  feed  the  flock,'  over  which  they  are  set,  labouring  amongst 
them  in  the  Word  and  doctrine  ?t  And  is  it  not  sin  toomit 
this  duty?  Plead  not  for  Baal.  Your  dispensations  for 
non-residency  and  Pluralities  of  Benefices,  as  for  two, 
three,  or  more  ;  yea,  tot  quot^  as  many  as  a  man  will  have, 
or  can  get,  are  so  many  dispensations  of  the  Laws  of  God 
and  sins  of  men.  These  things  are  too  impious  to  be  de- 
fended, and  too  manifest  to  be  denied. 

"Disposition  of  Kingdoms,  and  desposition  of  Princes: 
You  are  wiser,  and  1  hope  honester  than  thus  to  attempt, 
though  that  received  maxim  amongst  you, '  No  ceremony, 
no  bishop  ;  no  bishop,  no  king  ;'  savours  too  strongly  of  that 
weed.  But  what  though  you  be  loyal  to  earthly  kings,  and 
their  crowns  and  kingdoms,  yet  if  you  be  traitors  and  rebels 
against  the  King  of  his  Church,  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  sceptre 
of  his  Kingdom,  not  suffering  Him,  by  his  Laws  and  Offi- 
cers, to  reign  over  you  ;  but,  instead  of  them,  do  stoop  to 
Antichrist  in  his  offices  and  ordinances  ;  shall  your  loyalty 
towards   men   excuse   your    treason    against   the    Lord ! 

*  I  Tim.  iii.  2;    Tit.  i.l\  t  Isai.  Ivi,  10,  11, 

X  Acts  XX,  28;  1  Pet.  v.  1,'-?. 


APPENDIX.  379 

Though  you  now  cry  never  so  loud,  '  We  have  no  king  but 
Caesar,'*  yet  is  there  '  another  king,  one  Jesus,'t  which 
shall  return  and  pass  a  heavy  doom  upon  the  rebellious — 
'These  mine  enem-ies,  which  would  not  ihat  I  should  reign 
over  them,  bring  them,  and  slay  them  before  mej. 

"  Parting  stakes  with  God  in  Conversion  :  Not  to  speak 
of  the  error  of  universal  grace,  and  consequently  of  free- 
will, that  groweth  on  apace  amongst  you  ;  what  do  you  else 
but  put  in  for  a  part  with  God  in  Conversion,  though  not 
through  freedom  of  will,  yet  in  a  devised  Ministry,  the 
means  of  Conversion.  It  being  the  Lord's  peculiar  as  well 
to  appoint  the  outward  ministry  of  conversion,  as  to  give 
the  inward  grace. § 

"Kneeling  at  the  Sacrament  of  the  Lord's  Supper: 
'  Where,'  say  you,  '  are  those  rotten  heaps  of  Transubstan- 
tiating of  Bread  ?  And  where,  say  T,  learned  you  your  de- 
vout kneeling  to  or  before  the  Bread,  but,  from  that  error 
of  Transubstantiation  ?  Yea,  what  less  can  it  insinuate 
than  either  that  or  some  other  the  like  idolatrous  conceit ! 
If  there  were  not  something  more  in  the  bread  and  wine 
than  in  the  water  at  baptism,  or  in  the  Word  read  or 
preached,  why  should  such  solemn  kneeling  be  so  severely 
pressed  at  that  time,  rather  than  upon  the  other  occasions  ? 
And  well  and  truly  have  your  own  men  affirmed,  that  it 
were  far  less  sin  and  appearance  of  an  idolatry  that  is  no- 
thing so  gross,  to  tie  men,  in  their  prayers,  to  kneel  before 
a  crucifix,  than  before  the  bread  and  wine  :  and  the  reason 
followelh,  for  that  Papists  commit  an  idolatry  far  more 
gross  and  odious  in  worshipping  the  bread,  than  in  worship- 
ping any  other  of  their  images  or  idols  whatsoever. 
''  Adoring  of  Images  :  To  let  pass  your  devout  kneeling 
unto  your  Ordinary,  when  you  take  the  oath  of  canonical 
obedience,  or  receive  absolution  at  his  hands,  which,  as  the 
main  actions  are  religious,  must  needs  be  religious  adora- 
tion !  what  is  the  adoring  of  your  truly  human,  though 
called  '  Divine,'  Service  Book,  in  and  by  which  you  wor- 
ship God,  as  the  Papists  do  by  their  images  ?  If  the  Lord 
Jesus,  in  his  Testament,  have  not  commanded  any  such 
Book,  it  is  accursed  and  abominable.    If  you  think  he  have, 


*  John  xix.  15.     t  Acts  xvii.  7.     X  Luke  xix.  27.     §  1  Cor.  iii.9. 


380  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

show  US  the  place  where  ;  that  we  may  know  it  with  you  : 
or  manifest  unto  us,  that  ever  the  Apostles  used  them- 
selves, or  comrnendeci  to  the  churches  after  them,  any  such 
Service  Book  !  Was  not  the  Lord,  in  the  Aposiles'  time, 
and  Apostolic  Churches',  purely  and  perfectly  worshipped, 
when  the  officers  of  the  Church,  in  their  ministration,  man- 
ifested the  spirh  of  prayer  which  they  had  received  accord- 
ing to  the  present  necessities  and  occasions  of  the  Church  ; 
before  the  least  parcel  of  this  Patchery  came  into  the 
world  ?  And  might  not  the  Lord  now  be  also  purely  and 
perfectly  worshipped,  though  this  Printed  Image,  with  the 
painted  and  carved  images,  were  sent  back  to  Rome  ;  yea, 
or  cast  to  hell,  from  whence  both  they  and  it  came? 
Speak,  in  yourself^  might  not  the  Lord  be  entirely  wor- 
shipped with  pure  and  holy  worship,  though  none  other 
Book  but  the  Holy  Scriptures  were  brought  into  the 
Church  :  if  yea, — as  who  can  deny  it,  that  knows  what 
the  worship  of  God  meanelh,— what,  then,  doth  your  Ser- 
vice Book  there  ?  The  Word  of  God  is  perfect,  and  ad- 
mitteth  of  none  addition.  Cursed  be  he  that  addeth  to  the 
Word  of  the  Lord  ;  and  cursed  be  that  which  is  added  ; 
and  so  be  your  great  Idol,  the  Communion  Book,  though, 
like  Nebuchadnezzar's  image,  some  part  of  the  matter  be 
gold  and  silver,  which  is  also  so  much  the  more  detestable 
by  how  much  it  is  the  more  highly  advanced  amongst  you. 
"  Multitudes  of  Sacraments  :  The  number  of  Sacraments 
seems  greater  amongst  you,  by  one  at  least,  than  Christ 
hath  left  in  his  Testament ;  and  that  is  Marriage,  which, 
howsoever,  you  do  not,  in  express  terms,  call  a  sacrament, 
— no  more  did  Christ  and  the  Apostles  call  Baptism  and 
the  Supper  'sacraments,' — yet  do  you,  in  truth,  create  it  a 
sacrament,  in  the  administration  and  use  of  it.  There  are 
the  parties  to  be  married,  and  their  marriage,  representing 
'  Christ  and  his  Church,'  and  their  '  spiritual '  union  ;  to 
which  '  mystery,'  saith  the  oracle  of  your  Service  Book 
expressly,  God  hath  'consecrated'  them.  There  is  the 
Ring,  liallowed  by  the  said  Service  Book,  whereon  it  must 
be  laid,  for  the  element ;  there  are  the  words  of  consecra- 
tion, '  In  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  tie  Son,  and  of  the 
Holy  Ghost ;'  there  is  the  place,  the  Church  ;  the  time, 
usually  the  Lord's  day  ;  the  minister,   the  Parish  priest. 


APPENDIX.  381 

And  being  made,  as  ii  is,  a  part  of  God's  worship,  and  of 
the  minister's  office,  what  is  it,  if  it  he  not  a  sacrament  ? 
It  is  no  part  of  prayer,  or  preaching ;  and  with  the  sacra- 
ment it  hath  the  greatest  consimilitude  ;  but  an  Idol  I  am 
sure  it  is,  in  the  celebration  of  it ;  being  made  a  ministerial 
duty,  and  part  of  God's  worship,  without  warrant,  call  it 
by  what  name  you  will. 

"  Power  of  It)dulgences  :  Your  Court  of  Faculties,  from 
whence  your  dispensations  and  tolerations  for  Nonresi- 
dency,  and  plurality  of  Benefices,  are  had  ;  together  with 
your  commuting  of  Penances,  and  absolving  one  man  from 
another  :  take  away  this  power  from  the  Prelates,  and  you 
maim  the  '  Beast'  in  a  limb. 

"  Necessity  of  Confessions  :  In  your  High  Commission 
Court  very  absolute  ;  where,  by  the  oath  Ex  Officio^  men 
are  constrained  to  accuse  themselves  of  such  things  as 
whereof  no  man  will  or  can  accuse  them  ;  what  necessity 
is  laid  upon  them  in  this  case,  let  your  prisons  witness. 

"Profit  of  Pilgrimages:  Though  you  have  lost  the 
Shrines  of  Saints,  yet  you  retain  their  days,  and  those  holy 
as  the  Lord's  day  ;  and  that  with  good  profit  to  your  spirit- 
ual, carnal  Courts,  from  such  as  profane  them  with  the 
least  and  most  lawful  labour,  notwithstanding  the  liberty  of 
the  six  days'  labour  which  the  Lord  hath  given.  And  as 
much  would  the  Masters  of  these  Courts  be  stirred  at  the 
casting  of  these  saints'-days  out  of  the  Calendar,  as  were 
the  '  masters'  of  the  possessed  maid,  when  '  the  spirit  of  di- 
vination' was  cast  out  of  her:  Acts  xvi.  19. 

"  Constrained  and  approved  Ignorance  :  If  an  ignorant 
and  unpreaching  Ministry  be  approved  amongst  you,  and 
the  People  constrained,  by  all  kinds  of  violence,  to  submit 
unto  it,  and  therewith  to  rest, — as  what  is  more  usual 
throughout  the  whole  kingdom,— then  let  no  modest  man 
once  open  his  mouth  to  deny  that  '  ignorance'  is  '  con- 
strained and  approved'  amongst  you. 

"  Unknown  Devotions  :  If  the  Service,  said  or  sung,  in 
the  Parish  Church,  maybe  called  'devotion,'  then  sure 
there  is  good  store  of  unknown  devotion  ;  the  greatest  part, 
in  most  Parishes,  neither  knowing  nor  regarding  what  is 
said,  nor  wherefore. 

"  Penances  Enjoined  :    What  are  your  Sheet  Penances 


882  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

for  adultery,  and  all  your  Purse  Penances  for  all  other 
sins  ?  Than  which,  though  some  worse  in  Popery,  yet 
none  more  common. 

"  Touching  Purgatory  :  Though  you  deny  the  doctrine 
of  h,  and  teach  the  contrary,  yet  how  well  your  practice 
suits  with  il,  let  it  be  considered  in  these  particulars  :  Your^ 
absolving  of  men  d3nng  excommimicate,  after  they  be  dead, 
and  before  they  may  have  Christian-burial  :  your  Christian- 
burial  in  holy  ground,  if  the  party  will  be  at  the  charges  : 
your  ringing  of  hallowed  bells  for  the  soul :  your  singing 
the  corpse  to  the  grave  from  the  Church  stile  :  your  pray- 
ing over,  or  for  the  dead  ;  especially  in  these  words, 
'  Thai  God  would  hasten  his  kingdom,  that  we  with  this 
our  brother,'  though  his  life  were  never  so  wretched  and 
death  desperate, '  and  all  other  departed  in  the  true  faith  of 
thy  holy  Name,  may  have  our  perfect  consummation  both  in 
body  and  soul.'  Your  general  doctrines, and  your  particu- 
lar practices,  agree  in  this,  as  in  the  most  other  things,  like 
'  harp  and  harrow  !'  In  word  you  profess  many  truths, 
which  in  deed  you  deny.  These  and  many  more  Popish 
devices, — by  others,  at  large,  discovered  to  the  world, — 
both  for  pomp  and  profit,  are  not  only  not  rased, and  buried 
in  the  dust,  but  are  advanced  amongst  you,  above  all  that  is 
called  God. 

"  The  Churches  still  retained,  in  England  :  You  are  far 
from  doing  to  the  Romish  idols  as  was  done  to  the  Egyp- 
tian idols  '  Mithra  and  Serapis,'  whose  priests  were  expell- 
ed their  ministry,  and  monuments  exposed  to  utter  scorn 
and  desolation  ;  their  temples  demolished  and  rased  to  the 
very  foundation. 

"  The  Founders,  and  Furnitures  of  your  Churches  :  But 
your  Temples,  especially  your  Cathedrals  aiid  Mother- 
Churches,  stand,  still,  in  their  proud  majesty,  possessed  by 
Archbisops  and  Lord  Bishops,  like  the  Flamens  and  Arch- 
flamens  amongst  the  Gentiles,  from  whom  they  were  de- 
rived and  furnished  with  all  manner  of  pompous  and  super- 
stitious rnonutnents  :  as  carved  and  painted  images,  mass- 
ing copes  and  surplices;  chanting  and  organ  music,  and 
many  other  glorious  ornaments  of  the  Romish  Harlot,  by 
which  her  majesty  is  commended  to  and  admired  by  the 
vulgar ;    so   far  are  you   in   these   respects,  from    being 


APPExNDlX.  383 

gone,  or  fled,  yea,  or  crept  either,  out  of  Babylon  !  Now, 
if  yon  be  thus  Babylonish  where  you  repute  yourselves 
most  Sion-like,  and  thus  confounded  in  your  own  evidence  ; 
what  defence  could  you  make  in  the  things  whereof  an  ad- 
versary would  challenge  you?  If  your  light  be  darkness, 
how  great  is  your  darkness  ! 

"On  what  ground  Separation,  or  Ceremonies,  was  ob- 
jected :  But  for  that,  not  the  Separation,  but  the  cause, 
makes  the  Schismatic  ;  and  lest  you  should  seem  to  speak 
evil  of  the  thing  you  know  not,  and  to  condemn  a  cause  un- 
heard, you  lay  down,  in  the  next  place,  the  supposed  cause 
of  our  Separation  ;  against  wliich,  you  deal  as  insufficiently  : 
and  that  you  pretend  to  be,  none  other  than  your  '  consort- 
ing' with  the  Papists  in  certain  '  Ceremonies  ;'  touching 
which,  and  our  Separation  in  regard  of  them,  thus  you 
write.  Master  Hall  ;  If  you  have  taken  but  the  least  know- 
ledge of  the  grounds  of  our  judgment  and  practice,  how 
dare  you  thus  abuse  both  us  and  the  reader,  as  if  the  only 
or  chief  ground  of  our  Separation  were  your  Popish  Cere- 
monies ?  But  if  you  go  only  by  guess,  having  never  so 
much  as  read  over  our  treatise  published  in  our  defence, 
and  yet  stick  not  to  pass  this  your  censorious  doom  both 
upon  us  and  it;  I  leave  it  to  the  reader  to  judge  whether 
you  have  been  more  lavish  of  your  censure  or  credit  ! 
Most  unjust  is  the  censure  of  a  cause  unknown  ;  though  in 
itself  never  so  blameworthy  ;  which,  nevertheless,  may  be 
praiseworthy  for  aught  he  knows  that  censures  it, 

"  Estimation  of  Ceremonies,  and  Subjection  to  the  pre- 
lates:  And  touching  the  'Ceremonies'  here  spoken  of, 
howsoever  we  have  formerly  refused  them,  submitting,  as 
all  others  did  and  do,  to  the  Prelate's  Spiritual  Jurisdiction 
— herein,  through  ignorance,  straining  at  '  gnats,'  and  swal- 
lowing '  camels,' — yet,  are  we  verily  persuaded  of  them, 
and  so  were  before  we  separated.  That  they  are  but  as 
leaves  of  that  tree,  and  as  badges  of  that  '  man  of  sin,' 
whereof  the  Pope  is  head,  and  the  Prelates'  shoulders  ! 
And  so  we,  for  our  parts,  see  no  reason  why  any  of  the 
Bisliops'  sworn  servants,  as  all  the  Ministers,  of  the  Church 
of  England  arc;  canonlcally,  should  make  nice  to  wear 
their  Lords'  liveries.  Which  '  Ceremonies,'  notwithstand- 
ing, we  know  well  enough,  howsoever  you,  for  advantage, 


384  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

extenuate  and  debase  ihem  unto  us, — to  be  advanced  and 
preferred,  in  your  Church,  before  the  Preaching  of  the 
Gospel.  It  is  much  that  they,  being  '  not  so  much  as 
reed,'  nor  any  part  of  the  building, — as  you  pretend, — 
should  overturn  the  best  builders  amongst  you  as  they  do. 
The  proportion  beivvixt  'Zoar'  and  them,  holds  well  :  Zoar 
was  a  neighbour  unto  Sodom  both  in  place  and  sin,  and  ob- 
noxious to  the  same  destruction  with  it ;  and  it  was  Lot's 
error  to  desire  to  have  it  spared,*  and  so  he  never  found  rest 
nor  peace  in  it,  but  forsook  it  for  fear  of  the  same  just  judg- 
ment which  had  overtaken  the  rest  of  the  cities.  The  ap- 
plication of  this  to  your  '  Ceremonies,'  I  leave  to  yourself; 
and  them,  to  that  destruction  to  which  they  are  devoted  by 
the  Lord. 

*'  The  state  of  the  Temple,  and  the  Church  of  England 
in  resemblance:  How  we  would  have  behaved  ourselves 
'  in  the  Temple,'  where  '  the  money-changers'  were,  and 
they  that  'sold  doves,'  we  shall  answer  you  when  you 
prove  your  Church  to  be  the  '  Temple  of  God,'  compiled 
and  built  of  spiritually  '  hewn'  and  '  lively  stones  ;'f  and  of 
the  '  cedars,  firs,'f  and  '  ihyme,'§  trees  of  Lebanon,  framed 
and  set  together  in  that  comely  order  which  '  a  greater 
than  Solomon'  hath  prescribed  ;  unio  which  God  hath  pro- 
mised his  presence.  But  whilst  we  take  it  to  be,  as  it  is,  a 
confused  heap  of  dead  and  defiled,  and  polluted  stones,  and 
of  all  rubbish  of  briars  and  brambles  of  the  wilderness,  for 
the  most  part,  fitter  for  burning  than  building  ;  we  take 
ourselves  rather  bound  to  show  our  obedience  in  departing 
from  it,  than  our  valour  in  purging  it;  and  to  follow  the 
Prophet's  counsel  in  flying  out  of  Babylon,  '  as  the  he-goats 
before  the  flock.' 

"  Whether  Ministers  should  endure  themselves  Silenced  : 
And  what,  I  pray  you,  is  the  valour  which  the  best  hearted 
and  most  zealous  Refornners  amongst  you,  have  manifested 
in  driving  out  '  the  money-changers  .^'  Doth  it  not  appear 
in  this,  that  they  suffer  themselves  to  be  driven  out  with 
the  two-stringed  whip  of  Ceremonies  and  Subscription,  by 
'  the  money-changers'  the  Chancellors  and  Officials  which 


*  Gen.  19:  15,  Id,  U),  20.     t  1  Kings  ,"):  17,  IS.  G:  7.  1  Pet.  2:  .5. 
t  2  Chron.  2:  8.  §   Rev.  18:  12. 


APPENDIX.  385 

sell  sins  like  '  doves  ;'  and  by  the  chief-priests,  the  Bish- 
ops, which  set  them  on  work  ?  So  far  are  the  most  zeal- 
ous amongst  you,  from  driving  out  the  '  money-changers,' 
as  [that]  they  themselves  are  driven  out  by  them  ;  because 
they  will  not  change  with  them  to  the  utmost  farthing ! 

"  Power  of  Reforming  Abuses  :  For  the  '  wafers,'  in 
Geneva ;  and  disorders,  in  Corinth  ;  they  were  Corruptions 
which  may  and  do,  or  the  like  unto  them,  creep  into  the  pur- 
est Churches  in  the  world  :  for  the  Reformation  whereof, 
Christ  hath  given  his  power  unto  his  Church,  that  such  evils 
as  are  brought  in  by  human  frailty  may,  by  divine  author- 
ity, be  purged  out.  This  power  and  presence  of  Christ, 
you  want ;  holding  all  by  homage,  or  rather  by  villanage, 
under  the  Prelates  ;  unto  whose  sinful  yoke  you  stoop,  in 
more  than  Babylonish  bondage,  bearing,  and  approving,  by 
personal  communion,  infinite  abominations.  And  in  these 
last  two  respects  principally  ;  your  Babylonish  confusion 
of  all  sorts  of  people  in  the  body  of  your  Church,  without 
separation  :  and  your  Babylonish  bondage  under  your  spi- 
ritual Lords,  the  Prelates  ;  we  account  you  Babylon,  and 
fly  from  you. 

"  The  view  of  the  Sins  and  Disorders  of  others,  where- 
upon objected :  Master  Hall  having  formerly  expostulated 
with  us  our  supposed  Impiety,  in  forsaking  a 'Ceremoni- 
ous' Babylon  in  England,  proceeds,  in  the  next  place,  to 
lay  down  our  Madness,  in  choosing  a  '  substantial '  Babylon 
in  '  Amsterdam.'  And  if  it  be  so  found,  by  due  trial,  as 
he  suggesteth,  it  is  hard  to  say,  whether  our  Impiety  or 
Madness  be  the  greater!  Belike  Master  Hall  thinks  we 
gather  Churches  here,  by  town-rows,  as  they  do  in  Eng- 
land ;  and  that  all  within  the  Parish  Procession  are  of  the 
same  Church.  Wherefore  else,  tells  he  us  of  Jews,  Ari- 
ans,  and  Anabaptists  ;  with  whom  we  have  nothing  com- 
mon but  the  streets  and  market-place  ?  It  is  the  condition 
of  the  Church,  to  live  in  the  world,  and  to  have  civil  soci- 
ety with  the  men  of  the  world.*  But  what  is  this,  to  that 
spiritual  communion  of  the  saints  in  the  fellowship  of  the 
Gospel,  wherein  they  are  separated,  and  sanctified,  from 
the  world  unto  the  Lord  ?t 

*  1  Cor.  5:  10.  John  17:  1:}. 

t  John  17:  It),   I  Cor.  1:  '2.  2  Cor.  (k  17,  KS. 

33 


386  HISTORY  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

"  The  nearness  of  the  State  and  Church  :  We,  indeed, 
have  nnuch  wickedness  in  the  City  where  we  live  ;  you  in 
the  Church  :  but  in  earnest,  do  you  imagine  we  account 
the  Kingdom  of  England  '  Babylon,'  or  the  city  of  Amster- 
dam '  Sion  ?'  It  is  the  Church  of  England,  or  fetate-Eccle- 
siaslical,  which  we  account  Babylon  ;  and  from  which  we 
withdraw  in  spiritual  communion.  But  for  the  Common- 
wealth or  Kingdom,  as  we  honour  it  above  all  the  States  in 
the  world,  so  would  we  thankfully  embrace  the  meanest 
corner  in  it,  at  the  extremest  conditions  of  any  people  in  the 
kingdom.  The  hellish  impieties  in  the  city  of  'Amsterdam' 
do  no  more  prejudice  our  heavenly  communion  in  the 
Church  of  Christ,  than  the  frogs,  lice,  flies,  murrain,  and 
other  plagues  overspreading  Egypt,  did  the  Israelites,  when 
Goshen,  the  portion  of  their  inheritance,  was  free  ;*  nor 
than  the  deluge,  wherewith  the  whole  world  was  covered, 
did  Noah,  when  he  and  his  family  were  safe  in  the  ark  ;t 
nor  than  '  Satan's  throne'  did  the  Church  of  Pergamos, 
being  established  in  the  same  city  with  it.J 

"  Conversation  with  the  World  :  It  is  the  will  of  God  and 
of  Christ,  that  his  Church  should  abide  in  the  World,  and 
converse  with  it  in  the  affairs  thereof,  which  are  common  to 
both.  But  it  is  the  apostacy  of  Antichrist  to  have  commun- 
ion with  the  world  in  the  holy  things  of  God,  which  are  the 
peculiars  of  the  Church,  and  cannot,  without  great  sacri- 
lege, be  so  prostituted  and  profaned. 

"  The  Impure  Mixtures  of  the  Church  of  England  :  The 
air  of  the  Gospel  which  you  draw  in,  is  nothing  so  free  and 
clear  as  you  make  show.  It  is  only  because  you  are  used 
to  it,  that  makes  you  so  judge.  The  thick  smoke  of  your 
CrtnoT/s,  especially  of  such  as  are  planted  against  the  King- 
dom of  Christ,  the  visible  church  and  the  administration  of 
it,  do  both  obscure  and  poison  the  air  which  you  ali  draw 
in,  and  wherein  you  breathe.  The  pfeguy  spiritual  leprosy 
of  sin  rising  up  in  the  foreheads  of  so  many  thousands  in 
the  Church,  unshut  up,  uncovered,  infects  all,  both  persons 
and  things,  amongst  you.§  The  blasting  Hierarchy  suffers 
no  good  thing  to  grow  or  prosper,  but  witiiers  all,  both  bud 
and  branch.     The  dailv  sacrifice  of  the  Service    Book, 


*  Exod.  8:  22.  1   Gen.  7.  t  Rev.  2:  13. 

§  Lev.  13:  45—47.   2  Cor.  (r.  17. 


APPENDIX.  387 

which, — instead  of  spiritual  prayer  sweet  as  incense, — you 
offer  up,  morning  and  evening,  smells  so  strong  of  the 
Fope'' s  portuis,  as  it  makes  many  hundreds,  amongst  your- 
selves, stop  their  noses  at  it ;  and  yet  you  boast  of '  the  free 
and  clear  air  of  the  Gospel'  wherein  you  breathe  ! 

"  The  Judnment  of  the  Church  of  England  by  Herself 
and  her  Neighbours:  That  'all  Christendom  should  so 
magnify'  your  '  happiness,'  as  you  say,  is  much  ;  and  yet 
yourselves,  and  the  best  amongst  you,  complain  so  much, 
both  in  word  and  writing,  of  your  miserable  condition  un- 
der the  imperious  and  superstitious  Impositions  of  the  Pre- 
lates ;  yea,  and  suffer  so  much  also,  under  them,  as  at  this 
day  you  do,  for  seeking  the  same  Church  Government  and 
Ministry  which  is  in  use  in  all  other  churches,  save  your 
own  !  The  truth  is,  you  are  best  liked  where  you  are  worst 
known.  Your  next  neighbours  of  Scotland  know  your 
Bishops'  Government  so  well  as  they  rather  choose  to  un- 
dergo all  the  misery  of  bonds  and  banishment,  than  to  par- 
lake  with  you  in  your  '  happiness'  this  way  :  so  highly  do 
they  '  magnify'  and  '  applaud  '  the  same !  Which  choice,  I 
doubt  not,  other  Churches  also,  would  make,  if  the  same 
Necessity  were  laid  upon  them  !  And  for  your  '  graces,' 
w^e  '  despise'  them  not,  nor  any  good  thing  amongst  you  ; 
no  more  than  you  do  such  graces  and  good  things  as  are  to 
be  found  in  the  Church  of  Rome,  from  which  you  separate 
notwithstanding.  We  have,  by  God's  mercy,  the  pure  and 
right  use  of  the  good  gifts  and  graces  of  God  in  Christ's 
Ordinance,  which  you  want.  Neither  the  Lord's  people, 
nor  the  holy  vessels,  could  make  Babylon  Sion  ;  though 
both  the  one  and  the  oiher  were  captived  for  a  time. 

"  The  Issue  of  Separation  :  Where  the  truth  is  a  gainer, 
the  Lord, — which  is  TrxUXH, — cannot  be  '  a  loser.'  Nei- 
ther is  '  the  thanks' of  ancient '  favours  lost,'  amongst  them 
which  still  press  on  towards  new  mercies.  Unthankful  oio 
they  unto  tlie  blessed  Majesty  of  God,  and  unfaithful  also, 
which,  knowing  the  will  of  their  Master,  do  it  7iot,  but  go 
on  presumptuously,  in  disobedience  to  many — the  holy  or- 
dinances of  the  Lord  and  of  his  Christ — which  they  know% 
and  in  word  also  acknowledge,  he  hath  given  to  his  Church 
to  be  observed  ;  and  not  for  idle  speculation,  and  disputa- 
tion, without  obedience.  It  is  not  by  our  '  sequestration,' 
but  by  your  confusion,  that  '  Rome  and  Ilell  gains.'    Your 


388  HI  STOP.  V  OF  CONGREGATIONALISM. 

odious  commixture  of  all  sorts  of  people  in  the  body  of  your 
Church,  in  whose  lap  the  vilest  miscreants  are  dandled ; 
sucking  her  breasts,  as  her  natural  children  ;  and  are  be- 
blest  by  her — as  having  right  thereunto — with  all  her  holy 
things,  as  prayer,  sacraments,  and  other  ceremonies ;  is 
that  which  advantageth  '  Hell,'  in  the  final  obduration  and 
perdition  of  the  wicked,  whom,  by  these  means,  you  flatter 
and  deceive.  The  Romish  Prelacy  and  Priesthood  amongst 
you,  with  the  appurtenances  for  their  maintenance  and 
ministrations,  are  Rome's  advantage  :  which,  therefore, 
she  challengeth  as  her  own  ;  and  by  which,  she  also  still 
holds  possession  amongst  you,  under  the  hope  of  regaining 
her  full  inheritance,  at  one  time  or  other.  And,  if  the  Pa- 
])ists  take  'advantage'  at  our  condemnation  of  you,  and  sep- 
aration from  you  ;  it  concerns  you,  well  to  see  where  the 
blame  is,  and  there  to  lay  it ;  lest,  through  light  and  incon- 
siderate judgment,  you  justify  the  wicked,  and  condemn  the 
righteous.  And,  for  the  suspicion  of  the  '  rude  multitude,' 
you  need  not  much  fear  it.  They  will  suspect  nothing  that 
comes  under  the  King's  Broad  Seal  ;  they  are  ignorant  of 
this  fault !  Though  it  were  the  Mass  that  came  with  au- 
thority of  the  Magistrate,  they,  for  the  most  part,  would  be 
without  suspicion  of  it ;  so  ignorant  and  profane  are  they 
in  the  most  places.  It  is  ihe  wise-hearted,  amongst  you, 
that  suspect  your  dealings;  who  will  also  suspect  you  yet 
more,  as  your  unsound  dealings  shall  be  further  disco- 
vered. 

"  The  conclusion  :  Lastly  ;  The  terrible  threat  you  utter 
against  us, '  That  even  whoredoms  and  murders  shall  abide 
an  easier  answer,  than  Separation,'  would  certainly  fall 
heavy  upon  us,  if  this  answer  were  to  be  made  in  your  Con- 
sistory Courts,  or  before  any  of  your  Ecclesiastical  Judges  ; 
but  because  we  know  that  not  Antichrist,  but  Christ,  shall 
be  our  Judge,  we  are  bold  upon  the  Warrant  of  His  Word 
and  Testament — which  being  sealed  with  His  blood,  may 
not  be  altered — to  proclaim  to  all  the  world.  Separation 
from  whatsoever  riseth  up  rebelliously  against  the  sceptre 
of  His  Kingdom  ;  as  we  are  undoubtedly  persuaded  the 
Communion,  Government,  Ministry,  and  Worship  of  the 
Church  of  England  do!" 


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History  of  Congregationalism  :  from 


Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


1    1012  00035  9424 


